Colette ArrandIt’d be easy to mistake The Circle is Round, Atlanta alt-rock outfit Magnapop’s sixth album, for a comeback. That this is their first release in nine years would be enough, for many, to earn it that designation. When a band divorces itself from album cycles and rigorous touring schedules in support of those records, the silence between releases feels like an absence. Consider Magnapop, then, something like a placid lake—an entity that seems undisturbed, but is constantly churning just beyond perception.
The Circle is Round is the result of that churning, less of a comeback than it is a resurfacing. It has none of the hesitations of a reunion because, well, this is not a reunion. Between 2009’s Chase Park and now, Magnapop have continued to play together, largely in Europe, where the following they attracted in the ’90s festival scene continue to show up and support the band. Listening to them on this record, it’s easy to understand the attraction: The Circle is Round sounds like it was fun to write and record, but its easy charm does not dull the edge that earned them their reputation.
Songwriters Linda Hopper and Ruthie Morris have been writing towards the new LP virtually since the release of Chase Park, and though nine years is a long time for an album to come to fruition, nothing about the record feels overcooked. It doesn’t have a political hook in the way that recent efforts by groups like Le Tigre and Sleater-Kinney have, but that doesn’t make what’s on offer here any less poignant or of the moment. In fact, that unintended distance is a blessing, giving the listener space to listen to a band that is at home in itself and making music that’s a progression from the ’90s hits that they made their name on without being out of step with that catalog.
As proof, and bringing the circle to completeness, The Circle is Round concludes with tracks recorded in 1992. Rather than inviting you to make a comparison between the Magnapops of yesterday and today, that decision immerses the listener in the band as a continuous whole, as a group that has grown and evolved over the course of decades. No, you can’t call The Circle is Round a comeback; it feels like it’s been here as long as Magnapop has.
Below, courtesy of Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records, is a full album stream of The Circle is Round, accompanied by a track-by-track synopsis from vocalist Linda Hopper. The Circle is Round is available on LP, CD, and digital on Fri., Sept. 27. Pre-orders are available here.
This is from me, Linda Hopper, singer and writer of the words for Magnapop. I am really just writing about that aspect of each song. Ruthie Morris is the guitar player who starts the process with music, which I try to honor by writing cool words for. Shannon Mulvaney, bass, and David McNair, drums, are the monster rhythm section. We show them songs and they take it from there. We need all four of us to make this as powerful and, to me, amazing music.
All songs are fragments; feelings put to words and music, hoping to inspire a feeling in the listener that is universal and personal.
01. “Dog on the Door”
This song was written very early in our, Linda and Ruthie’s, songwriting partnership. It is all about the speed and tension of the music. “Dog on the Door” is inspired by the idea of people moving across the landscape but the words are phrases that sound good to me and keep the whole song tight.
02. “Change Your Hair”
The first song Ruthie and I wrote. It is my nostalgic look back at my life in Athens, GA and how it felt when I left, the first time.
03. “A Simple Plan”
Living in a complicated time, mildly political, what it feels like looking for your “group.”
04. “Supersize Me”
Talking one’s self down from the ledge, looking for peace and love and connection in this world.
05. “Need to Change”
My personal moving on song. Good news is: life is good and it goes on.
06. “What Can I Do”
Another song inspired by my chaotic view of the world today, with the knowledge that there is room to relate to others and make good human connections.
07. “Rain, Rain”
A song that has a melancholy feel and a sad, romantic look at life.
08. “Disabled”
A personal song about, as always with me, trying to make a connection. The good part of life is making connections with others, to be thought of.
09. “Rip the Wreck”
A fast, powerful song that is lines of rhyming words, imagery and, more than anything else, energy.
10. “Leo”
This is an older demo song. It was chosen for this record because we feel it captures the live energy of Magnapop. I love the tempo changes and attitude.
11. “Pretty Awful”
Demo. “Me at the bar, if the papers get it right…” Being a band in the day. Raw recording, great energy.
Magnapop will celebrate the release of The Circle is Round tomorrow night at Motor City South alongside Five Eight. Doors open at 8 p.m. A second release show goes down on Sat., Sept. 28 at Little Kings Shuffle Club with Pylon Reenactment Society and DJ Team Spud Go. Doors open at 9 p.m. Admission is $5.
More Info
Web: magnapop.com
Facebook: @magnapopband
Twitter: @magnapop