Their eighth studio album, Love You All Over Again, reaffirms the British sextet's signature – a rich amalgam of the rustic and cosmopolitan, the acoustic and digital, conventional stylings run through a Dadaistic filter.
Over the course of their 20-year run, the band have demonstrated a keen absorption of folk precedents, including the Irish/British/Appalachian canon, possibly owing a notable debt to Fairport Convention and Richard Thompson. They have also, however, consistently situated themselves in an avant-garde context, their early recordings exemplifying the folktronic subgenre, and likely inspiring such artists as Bon Iver and Sylvan Esso.
“Why do we play this amazing stupid messed up game?” Sam Genders and Becky Jacobs ask on “Everything Else”, their voices impeccably in sync. Various images and declarations capture the wonder and confusion inherent to human existence (“We gorge ourselves and laugh like mad”, “It makes no sense to be here now”). The track is contemporised by precise beats, horn-like synths, and well-placed hums, buzzes, and hisses.
“Didn’t Know Why” shows the band familiarly corralling
mechanistic sounds, acoustic guitar voicings, and catchy melodic
constructions. Lyrically, the track accentuates the band’s surreal
leanings (“Jenny said no I don’t want to go home / screamed at the sky
and she swallowed her phone”). “Laundry” blends crisp beats, woodwinds,
and fleeting accents, Genders offering his take on the
“return-to-nature” motif (“If you were the sky … / then you’d surely die
/ as happy as can be”).
With “Yeekeys”, meanwhile, the band forge one of their more
beat-centric pieces, aspiring to quirky danceability while Genders
interweaves kids’ lit and psychedelia: “We’ll build a boat out of red
wine and honey / Sail to the moon where the starlight is burning”. In the Aeroplane over the Sea-era
Jeff Mangum would give a smile and thumbs-up, as would Maurice Sendak
and Dr. Seuss. Closer “Coat Hangers” collages sleek synth lines and
casual percussion, the laidback flow peppered with quotidian banter that
brings to mind recent forays by Claire Rousay.
With Love You All Over Again, Tunng reassert their
distinct MO while experimenting with their sonic and lyrical reach.
Hooky melodies, layered textures, quirkily poetic lyricism. Romanticism
meets meta-modernism. Fans will find this latest iteration enrolling;
new listeners may feel compelled to dig deeper, in which case the band’s
first three albums are wholeheartedly recommended.
