The Embassy 

                                                Life in the Trenches 

                                                        7.6/10

                                                    Recommended 

When you first listen to the Embassy’s official sophomore album, Life in the Trenches it instantly sounds like a familiar classic. The Swedish band first started making music in the early 2000s, but they were ahead of their time and their signature sound wasn’t wholeheartedly welcomed. However, they did go on to inspire a number of Gothenburg acts, including Jens Lekman and the Tough Alliance as they drew upon the tropical, Balearic, sunny upbeat music, creating a number of outstanding LPs over the past few years. So while the 12 songs on Trenches may sound like you’ve heard it all before it’s because you have - not directly of course but sonically.

Starting with the bright opener “You Tend to Forget,” you are transported to a warm climate location thanks to a bustling acoustic guitar, bongos and cozy flutes. The lyrics are jarring right off the bat as lead vocalist Fredrik Lindson sings “Get a grip/ Take a shit/ Get your kicks on channel six.” “Make Me Sad” is another standout with his electropop drums and familiar melody - very, very familiar but I can’t seem to put my finger on which song it sounds like. Nevertheless it’s a nice piece of ear candy as is the distorted “No Thanks,” where Lindon sings the catchy hook “I find you on your back/ You find me on a knife.” But Trenches’ sharpest moment is on “St8,” which sounds like the band’s take on the Beatles. It is lush and perfectly shimmers with airy guitars and a massive hook where Lindon’s wobbly vocals chant “Every beat of your drum is wasted/ Every song you sing is too lame/ Every word is a hesitation/ Feel no shame.” There are lively electric guitars, cowbells and flowing synthesizers that all work in perfect harmony.  ”Information” is another well executed track with a killer guitar riff, Balearic drums and Lindson’s voice is doused in reverb. “Flipside of a Memory” sounds like the Embassy doing a New Order track and it is completely enjoyable; new wave mixed with tropical is a genius move and the craftwork of the cut bursts through with dusty drums and Lindson channels Bernard Sumner voice.   

What weighs down Trenches is its fluff. Tracks like the instrumental “Puttgarden,” the bongo and sample driven “Heathrow,” the spacey “E6” and boring ballad “C’est La Vei,” are not terrible but you end up wanting to skip them to get to the really good stuff, like the house inspired “New Plans” with its cheesy effects and piano riff. Or the closing track “I Lay Awake,” that is terminally chill due to the shake-shake of a tambourine and cloudy acoustic guitar. 

Life in the Trenches isn’t a complex LP. The songs are straightforward and delightful and at its best moments it breathes life into the air and surrounds you with familiar soundscapes that are a pleasure to hear. The Embassy do what they do extremely well and bands like Air France, jj and pretty much everyone signed to Sincerely Yours (named after one of the Embassy’s songs) owes the duo a great deal of thanks for honing and perfecting the Gothenburg-Balearic aesthetic.