Apart

Album Review

Apart is the second full-length from Florida's Mira, an indie pop band that's big on drums, sparkling guitars, catchy songwriting, and gorgeous singing from Regina Sosinski. At a time when rock music has moved away from its center — the place of longing that prompted Chuck Berry to pen "Maybellene," George Harrison to sing "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," Pete Townshend to write "Love Reign O'er Me," Ian Curtis to sing "Love Will Tear Us Apart," the Jesus and Mary Chain to compose the entire Darklands album, Ride to compose their first two glorious LPs, and Polly Harvey to record To Bring You My Love — Mira seek a place back in the heart of rock and pop. Apart is a compendium of well-crafted songs that aren't afraid to let the guitars blaze while keeping the hooks intact. Tracks like "Going Nowhere" and "In Theory" reflect their introspective themes by repetitive guitar lines and shimmering atmospherics hovering about Sosinski's vocals. The subject matter is dreary and lonely. These songs hurt, but they're far from dark — they express emotion without wallowing in it. The textures the musicians provide their singer are contrasts she must contend with, compelling her to rise up to the challenge of the subtle yet ever-shifting rhythmic percussion attack and the glissando guitars reaching toward a bliss clearly not reflected in the lyrics. "Open in Silence" is the most hypnotic and sensual track on the record; Sosinski lays herself bare by asking, "How do you feel?." Guitars play inside and on top of one another, single-line riffing it as she emotes, expressing her need in the mist they create. Percussion shifts itself to compensate and underlines the physicality and spiritual manifestations of her longing before the guitars crunch it all home, pulling off the mask and underlining the sensate truth in the lyrics. Mira has moved toward something far more organic, far more seductive, threatening, and honest, and with Apart, its emotionally searing echoes remain long after the music has ceased to play.