On first listen, it seems that no problem described on The Chaos in Order, the debut from Let's Go Sailing, is so dire that it can't be solved over a cup of tea. Guitars chime and shimmer, cellos sweetly lurk, drums and bass keep time unobtrusively, and frontwoman/songwriter Shana Levy-- formerly of L.A.'s Irving and occasionally of Rilo Kiley and dios (malos)-- sings bright melodies and bittersweet lyrics in a superlatively whispery voice. Overall, The Chaos in Order sounds as cute as its homemade artwork.
And yet, further listens should put the songs' emotional and romantic dilemmas in sharp contrast. That's the way it's supposed to work, at least. Indie cute usually involves an easy chiaroscuro between dark thoughts and light sounds, as exemplified by The Boy Least Likely To and as attempted by Chris Garneau. On one hand, Levy is the feminine counterpart to these adolescent-reverting males: her songs are self-reflective but cheery, wounded but bouncy. On the other hand, Levy's dilemmas sound like those of an actual adult-- The Woman Most Likely To. The album tackles romantic self-negation ("We Get Along"), codependence ("All I Want from You is Love"), stray suicidal thoughts ("The Rope Is Long"), and even depression (just about everything else), usually in a lyrically grown-up, if occasionally self-absorbed, fashion.
This maturity, however, can be a hindrance, as it makes tweer numbers like "Icicles" seem especially frivolous and more confessional numbers like "All I Want from You is Love" sound bland, even anonymous. And her imagery can be clunky: "My heart is the...broken rubber band in the bag of good ones," she sings on the pat "Too Many Stars". However, "It's as Clear" trips along with chin-up determination as Levy conveys romantic confusion in a cascade of oooh-ooh-oohs, and given the tragic predicament of "We Get Along", the poppy melody and upbeat tempo sound convincingly self-delusional.
The album's best track is its first: "Sideways", an insistent opener that contains Levy's catchiest melody, best lyrics, and most assured performance. That it was used in an episode of "Grey's Anatomy", among the most preposterous shows on television, suggests that Levy's true context isn't boy's-club indie cute, but something a little different and potentially more interesting: She's the heir to mid-90s female singers like Lisa Loeb and Jill Sobule, who paired smart lyrics with shameless folk pop and actually found a place on masculine rock radio. Likewise, despite the flaws of her first solo album, Let's Go Sailing are a welcome corrective to the arrested development and self-absorption of so many indie guys with guitars.
