After taking a few years off from being a band and living life, the formerly happy go-lucky Swedes return with a new producer, one less member, and a slightly different outlook. While
Are You Thinking of Me Every Minute of Every Day? has all the bounce and energy of their previous album
Bandages for the Heart, it delves into some darker emotions and has a few moments that could even be called thoughtful. Basically, this time they might require the listener to do a little more thinking and feeling as they careen around the room, propelled by the upbeat indie pop the group plays. The first track, "Don't Be Scared," lets you know right away that the band is using different tools this time, with it's funereal tempo, intertwining emotion-wracked vocals, and synths and bass conjuring up a sad jam session between
the Cure and
New Order. It builds into typically rambunctious
Lacrosse territory by the end, but the mood has been cast. The rest of the album swerves between slightly blue tunes, uptempo tracks that almost sound a little angry (the hard-charging "50% of Your Love"), and songs that are filled with so much bubbling energy it's a wonder the music stays attached to the tape. These are the tracks that fans of the band will be expecting, and they deliver some really good ones. "I Told You So (Didn't I)," in particular, has the heart of a tiger and a melody that will have you singing at the top of your lungs as you head into battle (or sit stuck in traffic). The vocals are brilliantly pitched throughout, with Nina Waha Arlinder's sometimes wacky, sometimes heartbreaking vocals used as a spice that gives the album a unique flavor. It's no small feat to introduce new elements to a band's sound after they have firmly established one that works really well for them.
Lacrosse do that here and it's a pleasure to see, and to hear. Fans of thoughtfully energetic indie pop will have to search far and wide to find better crafted, more entertaining sounds than those heard on
Are You Thinking of Me Every Day?