Ron Mael and his younger brother Russell were born and raised in Los Angeles and first recorded under the name Urban Renewal Project and subsequently Halfnelson, before settling on the name Sparks in 1972. They release their latest opus this month `MAD!` which is the band’s 28th studio album.
The album begins with `Do Things My Own Way` which is a really precise and straightforward way of summoning up these brothers fifty year career as they`ve certainly done things their own way. A line amongst many highlights the absurdity of this duo with “I’m Howard Hughes, In Jordan 2s” a reference to Ron`s love of classic sneakers. A stripped back unadorned listen that says so much. There`s a real rhythmic dreaminess about `JanSport Backpack` which is an amusing veiled observation on brand obsessives.
`Hit Me, Baby` has a delightful percussive beat and recalls a bizarre tale of a nightmare that you need to be woken from immediately but as always with Sparks there seems to be a more metaphorical slant to this tale of an ephialtes, a true nightmare. The rise of influencers appears to be at the heart of `Running Up A Tab At The Hotel For The Fab` a real slow burn with an almost reggae tinge.
`My Devotion` is a melodic dreamy offering which tells of one`s commitment and dedication to someone which becomes almost obsessive to the extent of getting a tattoo with their name. Religious leaders and philosophers are at the heart of the frantic pulsating `Don`t Dog It`, an American slag way of saying don’t shirk your responsibility or avoid your duties.
`In Daylight` is a kind of a trademark Sparks offering with a backhanded compliment as to everyone looking great at night. Another captivating dreamlike submission. There’s a sense of local pride shared throughout the almost orchestrated symphonic `1-405 Rules` a veneration of the I-405 expressway. Interstate 405 aka the San Diego Freeway is the main north/south freeway for the Westside of L.A. and roughly follows the outline of the Pacific coast for much of its route. The brothers compare it`s beauty with other picturesque places in the world with a line that states “the Allegheny, Nile, and the Rhine in Deutschland, and all of them are beautiful but 405’s a 10”.
`A Long Red Light` has an edgy almost fearful vibe with a sound akin to a Hitchcock movie soundtrack, it`s a tribute to these siblings where they can even make the everyday mundane into something suspenseful and gripping. A reflection on earthly ambitions possibly. We move to a more delightfully introspective musing with `Drowned In A Sea Of Tears` a number that has a kind of forties texture and reflects on possible unhappiness and depression.
`A Little Bit Of Light Banter` is a cheerful foot-tapping come head nodding reverie. They say that laughter is the best form of medicine, and this number goes some way to proving that idiom. We close out with `Lord Have Mercy` and it`s a kind of spiritual almost gospel like offering and a thoughtful uplifting piece to end on.
`MAD!` is indeed mad and full of what we`ve come to expect from the Mael Brothers. Songs that are melodically foot tapping, sophisticated and full of acerbic lyrics where no subject is off limits be it world shattering or mundane. Sparks are like what we`ve come to rely on in life such as the sun rising each morning or the changing of the seasons, we know we`re gonna get some melodic intelligent earworms that will remain with us for some time to come.
You`d be crazy not to invest in `MAD!`
Rating 9/10
