I guess if your debut album has already been described as ‘baroque’ – featuring as it did a twenty-strong accompaniment led by a composer with ‘Ludwig’ in his name – then you might wonder how on Earth you could follow it up? Could you possibly expand on an even grander scale, or go the whole Bruce Springsteen Nebraska (guitar and harmonica will suffice?)
Comprising a lean and trimmed-down eight-piece collective, the new-look San Fermin have recorded a delightful gem of a single with The National’s producer, Peter Katis, which, given the association with Allen Tate / Matt Berninger from the self-titled first record, is a smart move.
Entitled ‘Jackrabbit’, the track once again showcases the band’s adventures in a musical wonderland that are inspiring, surprising and utterly endearing. Group leader, Yale music graduate and overall music sculptor Ellis Ludwig-Leone has created what he describes as a “fight or flight” song, encouraging the listener to “run for the hills and don’t look back”. It’s a confused, scared animal that the young college graduate is describing, “anywhere you go you lose, when you’re lost in the woods and alone in the world too.”
The song creates a feeling of drama, intensity and eventual exuberance – a mini opera (or possibly to bring it into modern-day parlance, a modern-day family soap drama) – where the triumphant drums and brass evoke the spirit of freedom and escapism from whatever trauma is revolving around Ludwig-Leone’s head.
Lead vocals this time around are provided by Charlene Kaye who delivers an altogether more forthright approach: “want to live like an animal, by the skin of your teeth, put your good face on, you’re foolin’ no one…” before leading a marching band into the kind of driven chorus usually reserved for the likes of Colin Meloy’s The Decemberists (or retrospectively as heard on Kate Bush’s ‘Running Up That Hill’)
She also has the ability to blend restrained and understated verses with the kind of animated, vivacious harmonies that Holly and Jess from Lucius (who provided such wonderful vocals on the debut album) do so admirably.
Musically, the leaner ensemble is a tight unit – obviously showing the benefits and experience of touring together – although dexterity and playfulness still shines throughout. ‘Jackrabbit’ is beauty without resulting in saccharine sweetness; bombastic without leading to pomposity; subtle yet ambitious when it needs to be – the kind of thing The Leisure Society do so well.
Uplifting, triumphant and backed by musical accomplishment, this single deserves attention – not just for its powerful imagery but because it makes use of our senses; the listener can engage with the band, our imagination is stimulated and our emotions are heightened. Surely this is a sign of great pop music and yes, it is ultimately a pop song, in a climate where the very word ‘pop’ conjures up hideous images of five-headed homunculus beasts with matching toothy grins and their blank ballads of teenage torment.
‘Jackrabbit’ is bold, daring and exciting; as good a single you’ll hear all year.
Available now from iTunes: http://smarturl.it/SFJrabbit
San Fermin today also announces the following live shows this April and May:
London, England – Jazz Cafe – April 27th 2015
Dublin, Ireland – Whelans – April 28th 2015
Amiens, France – Lunes Des Pirates – April 30th 2015
Amsterdam, Holland – Bitterzoet – May 1st 2015
Hamburg, Germany – Prinzenbar – May 2nd 2015
Paris, France – La Maroquinerie – May 4th 2015
Brighton, England – Hope – May 5th 2015
San Fermin’s album Jackrabbit is out on Downtown Records / Sony RED on April 27th
