Boycrazy

Apparently, Boycrazy's Bryce Edwards was good friends with a bunch of people in Boulder, CO, in the early '90s that went on to form the Elephant 6 collective. Not that you'd know when you listen to Foreign Words, because it is a pop record that is about as far from the likes of Olivia Tremor Control as you can get. Boycrazy makes somewhat traditional, dreamy indie-pop, and while there really isn't anything new or exciting on Foreign Words, that doesn't lessen its effectiveness. It doesn't pretend to be anything else and free of those constraints, it can get on with weaving its spell. The strongest point of the album are the vocals; Edwards and his co-conspirators Rachel Blumberg, Alan Harris and Jeff London build layer upon layer of harmony that pushes the singing right to the front of every single song. The combination of male and female vocals blends together beautifully and it helps to disguise the remarkably normal combination of instruments playing in the background. The trick to pop music is to find the right combination of disposable songs and memorable tunes, and Boycrazy don't quite manage to achieve the correct balance. The whole album might be over before you even notice, something that could be good or bad depending on your point of view, but there is something reassuring about Foreign Words that could win at least a few hearts.