(Indie Rock) The Happy Problem - Birth - 2016, MP3, 320 kbps

On this third release from LA-based indie rock band The Happy Problem, frontwoman and founder Sam Shaber stretches her boundaries of sound and emotion, from guttural reggae to ecstatic powerpop to naked acoustics to rich, layered vocals. Originally titled "Birth and Death and All the Crap in Between," the album dives into the basic tentpoles of human existence: birth, death, love, loss, youth, aging, devastation and joy. Shaber describes the song order as "a Side A/Side B format," with Side A being the first five songs, all written in the last year and recorded in Los Angeles, and Side B, tracks 7-11, written and recorded over three years ago on the opposite coast. The result is a real-time exploration of getting older and finding identity amidst a volatile, fastforward world.
Light, catchy pop tunes like "All I Want," "Freak in Love," and "Baby" intermingle with darker, more lush expressions of defeat, resolve, loss, and release like "Disco Song of Love," "I Quit the War," and "Relapse." Side A features the stripped-back acoustic ballad "Fathers Day" which sits in stark contrast to the richly layered, anthemic "Hey Celebrity" on Side B; both exploring death and mortality, but in very different ways. ("Fathers Day" describes the loss not only of Shaber's own father, but more recently, her uncle and cousin in the same year, while "Hey Celebrity" is based on her experience of losing a friend to brain cancer in 2011.) The final track, a driving, indie rock reinterpretation of the quirky Kinks classic "Lola," lends one last dash of freedom and release to bring it all home.
Even with weighty themes and undertones, "Birth" is an album of joyous tempos, raucous voices, ownership and victory - from dark, comes light. Without gravity, joy floats away. The result is a multi-layered, rousing listen that invites repeated examination and celebration: just like life.
C) 2016 Sam Shaber & The Happy Problem, Brown Chair Records. Tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 recorded at Ultrasound Studios, Los Angeles, CA: Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards, Glockenspiel - Sam Shaber; Bass - Jon Siebels; Drums - Nick Adams; Cello - Pierre Derycz; Oboe - Phil the Man Popham. Tracks 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 recorded at Degraw Studios, Brooklyn, NY: Vocals, Guitars - Sam Shaber; Lead Guitar - Ian Wolff; Bass - Ben Rice; Drums - Nick Adams. Track 12 recorded at Unison Music, Valley Village, CA: Vocals & Guitar - Sam Shaber; Lead Guitar, Vocals - James Kloeppel; Bass, Vocals - Diederich Castro; Drums, Vocals - John Cody Watson. Mixed by Fred Archambault. Mastered by Howie Weinberg. Album design by Swin Huang.