Adventure // Stegosaur

The opening to Stegosaur’s Adventure 7″ sounds out as a welcoming conversation starter, a casual greeting to you, the listener on the other side. Jerid Reed Morris, the man behind the vocals, speaks to you of picking the attention of record executives and as you feel part of the conversation, it’s surely hard to wonder how this foursome could evade the kingpin dream-makers of the recording industry.

From first impressions alone, Adventure is a charming creature. The wailing energy of “A Headache”, after the steady intro, chimes familiarly toward that of The Strokes’ Albert Hammond Jr.’s solo work. The bubbling beat makes for perfect body thrashing material. Then “Big Breath”, the soundtrack for a crackling city pavement on a steaming summer’s evening, earns major props for both Jerid Reed Morris and Jose Clement Rodriguez who work flawlessly on the prickling guitar sound that explodes into angst at the middle peak of the song. Anyone who can identify with the longing freedom of M83′s “Don’t Save Us From The Flames” has found the yang to that yin in “Big Breath”.

Finally, the closer, and my personal favorite track, which is called “Bloooooood”, invokes hand clapping rhythms and the Rhodes piano fixture from Mr. Jose Clement Rodriguez throw in the way of Rilo Kiley but an originative edge of cool comes oozing past a barrier of supposals as the layered vocal talent of a ragamuffin choir strike upon the notes. The song slows into a slightly melancholic cry in spite of all the brightness, so you, the captured listener, feel as if you are being pulled with force down a candy rollercoaster of potential terror. It’s up, it’s down, backwards and forwards, but always fresh and never boring.

The only and perhaps the biggest problem with the Adventure 7″ is that closing with a track like “Bloooooood” leaves the listener restless and aching for more. Perhaps this is a method of the band, to keep us hungry and begging for a full, luscious album of chirpy hat tricks.

Stegosaur are the kind of band that are absolutely bursting with potential for massive expansion. For world domination, or domination of the hearts of many. The entire spectrum of their possibility must be explored, recorded, and rushed to record stores as soon as possible. Then, the fun will ensue.