Accents - Growth and Squalor

TJ Foster and Benjamin Hemingway are known collectively as Accents. Usually described as indie-folk, their output is difficult to place in any one genre. Growth and Squalor, their full length debut, makes me think of a world-weary Decemberists combined with a less drunken version of The Good Life.

Foster, who sings the bulk of the material, has a fragile and desperate quality to his voice. Most of these songs revolve around an acoustic guitar and his lead vocal melody. These two key elements shape the bare bones of tracks later fleshed-out with multiple guitars, keys, drums, and harmonizing vocals. Considering that Accents is a duo, I can't help but wonder how different these songs sound live. Regardless, they certainly work on record.

Hemingway, primarily a drummer, brings movement and flow to the arrangements, utilizing the entire kit and providing plenty of dizzying fills and tom builds. He also knows when a simple and steady kick is enough, or when to drop out entirely and let the songwriting and acoustic guitar carry the weight. In addition to drums he is credited with bass, keys, and vocals.

These songs have a cohesive and tight sound, which is interesting considering that Hemingway and Foster were never in the same studio at the same time. The two first worked together in the band The Cast Before The Break. Hemingway produced their debut As Your Shoulders Turn on You, but eventually left and was replaced by Ryan Crosby. Foster continues to front TCBTB. He and Hemingway collaborated on Growth and Squalor over the course of one year. They assembled the songs in two separate studios, one in New York and one in Virginia. The two took turns recording, overdubbing, and editing these pieces in relative isolation. They do however get together for live performances, often accompanied by Lauren Alexander, who also adds some really cool backup vocals to this record.

Foster and Hemingway’s songwriting, while substantial and catchy, is vastly different from the epic sounds of TCBTB. Tracks like “The Fog”, “Alright With Me”, and “Around” could easily appeal to mainstream indie-rock or pop music fans looking for a more mature and authentic alternative to The Avett Brothers or Mumford & Sons. Though the lyrics are solid and consistent, the biggest strength of Growth and Squalor is the range of emotions each track expresses.

While Accents clearly have a handle on quiet, complex, and restrained songs, they also have enough gusto to let go and rock out a little. “Routine Movements” features a hooky blues run dressed as a raucous indie guitar riff. Growth and Squalor closes with the anthemic “Sorrow”, which as the name implies, isn't exactly an upbeat tune. The music strips down almost entirely to an acoustic guitar and vocals before a mass chorus begins chanting and the instrumentation builds dramatically once more, giving the album an appropriately climactic ending.

(The digital version of Growth and Squalor includes a hypnotic extra track called “Seeds.” Multiple voices harmonize intricately and precisely, creating a really cool effect. This song shows a different side of Accents, perhaps offering a glimpse into their future work.)

-Eric White

Accents

Growth and Squalor

(Deep Elm)