It's Frightening

iTunes Review

From the spare, staccato drums of the compelling “Percussion Gun” to the urgent, gloomy, and equally percussion-heavy “Lionesse,” It’s Frightening aims for a less-is-more aesthetic and has a darker, cryptic vibe throughout. We’ve departed the tropicalia dance party of Fort Nightly and find ourselves in a sophisticated, noir-ish city landscape. The tones are cool grays and midnight blues, and scenes play out slowly and stealthily. “Rudie Fails” has a typical sparseness to it, even though there’s a lot happening: a clanging tambourine is muted in the background while resonant piano chords, lacy guitar picking, and clattering percussion weave in and out of foreground and background vocals. “Midnight and I” is starkly beautiful, from its hollow snare drum to the carefully layered piano and jagged guitar shards, while the clacking rhythms and spy-guitar riffs in “Right Where They Left” are frugal and effective. The open spaces and clean production on It’s Frightening show the New York sextet in a new light: under a dim lamppost on a foggy city night, at an hour that offers only trouble.