Staying loyal to the concept introduced on their debut EP, 2018's
Singles, Brooklyn dreamers
Barrie return a year later with their first full-length,
Happy to Be Here. It was co-produced by bandleader
Barrie Lindsay alongside engineer and mixer
Jake Aron (
Snail Mail,
Beth Orton), who also contributed to the debut. All five members of
Barrie, however, contribute to the group's lush, gently off-kilter dream pop. Wrapping their warm, shimmery harmonic pop in reverb, easygoing tempos, and
Lindsay's airy murmurs, it's a distinctly spongy sound that permeates the album's just-over half-hour run time. The sound is so consistent that rhythmic touches more than changes in synth and guitar textures stave off homogeneity. While that's a trait of the whole album, these contrasts are most conspicuous on tracks like "Habits," with its intricate, jazz-and-pop hybrid drum patterns, and the cantering "Geology," which draws additional rhythmic complexity from broken guitar chords and staggered guitar and keyboard entry points. Elsewhere, the bubbly "Chinatown" relies on syncopation in both its keyboard and vocal hooks. Speaking of hooks, the analog synth-punctuated "Clovers" is probably the nearest thing to vibrant pop on the album, but while it, too, is allowed to surface for fresh air periodically -- in this case for brief, staccato piano breaks -- for the most part, it stays submerged in the album's opaque design. More mood music than earworm despite the occasional bright melody and head-bobbing groove,
Happy to Be Here is nonetheless a feel-good outing, one ideal for low-key summer settings. ~ Marcy Donelson
