Album Of The Week: Thao & The Get Down Stay Down’s A Man Alive

There’s a certain mellow coolness to Thao Nguyen’s music. It has a habit of taking over your senses and giving you numerous sensations. She’s the frontwoman and guitarist for the San Francisco groovy indie-folk act Thao & The Get Down Stay Down, a band that has been making waves in the independent music community since their start in 2003. They have a new album out called A Man Alive and it brings a lot of synths and beats to the table, making for rhythms that’ll stick with you as each track offers something different.

The band’s fourth album is considered their most adventurous, evolving both lyrically and in sound. Produced by Merrill Garbus from the New England art-pop project tUnE-yArDs, the tones have a lot of body. A Man Alive boasts pleasant harmonies that give the album a distinct sonic exuberance. The experimentation and playfulness Nguyen, bassist and keyboardist Adam Thompson and drummer Charlie Glenn exhibit create original music that’s striking. A Man Alive is definitely in my top 10  albums to come out so far in 2016.

It’s always refreshing when a band creates freaky, weird pop music. The originality has to be appreciated, especially when way too many bands and musicians sound the same. To stray away from the redundancy of it all, check out my top tracks from the Album Of The Week:

It might be the way Nguyen is strumming her guitar but it sounds like there’s a violin in “Nobody Dies” and it’s incredible. The drumming from Glenn gives the track a nice backbone as well. A little bit of funk exudes from Thompson’s bass with “Meticulous Bird” and Nguyen does a bit of rapping to bring a hip hop vibe too. It’s probably the most unique track on the album. “Astonished Man” features that bass and synth that has become a trademark style of the band.

For us New England music fans, Thao & The Get Down Stay Down will be making two stops. They’ll be at Higher Ground in Burlington, VT on April 11 and the following night they’ll be at The Sinclair in Cambridge, MA within the Boston metro area. You’ve got two chances to check out this killer band up close so don’t pass it up. Before they come to your local music venue, grab a copy of A Man Alive. It’ll reinvigorate you in more ways than one.

Stream “Nobody Dies” on Youtube

Thao & The Get Down Stay Down’s Website