Blank Realm is never really quiet. Blank Realm is never really controlled. Blank Realm is simply Blank Realm, a messy band of pop savvy musicians with an eye for coloring outside the lines. They’re a group who knows when to tighten their music and when to let it breathe. They’re also a group that knows the latter of the two is their strongest card. So, even when those lines inch toward accessibility and structure, we get “River of Longing,” a jangle pop tune bursting at its seems.
“River of Longing” drifts between the Cult and the Cure, dishing up tight leads and a jingling chorus shared between singers Daniel and Sarah Spencer. It’s a song that might seem strange to a more casual Blank Realm listener — I’m used to something a little more dissonant and heavier. Yet, “River of Longing” continues on with its synchronized pop riffage with blissful spunk.
Blank Realm never lets their structure dictate, though. After a few runs through verse-chorus-verse theatrics, Blank Realm gives them that second to break everything down into a shoegaze flurry of feedback and horns. Underneath all of that, the chordplay remains, strumming out that simple, joyous progression.