Track Attack: The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die — ‘Dillon And Her Son’
Posted: by The Editor
Photo by Connor Feimster
Since their monumental second record Harmlessness (2015), The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die have done nothing other than repeatedly outperform themselves. Last year, the ever-prolific outfit released a handful of genuinely fantastic singles that either punted beyond their creative boundaries (“Katamari Duquette” and “Body Without Organs” are their two heaviest songs to date) or reaffirmed that they can stretch a song for over six minutes and leave you wishing it was longer (the gorgeous “Smoke & Felt” from their split with Sorority Noise).
On “Dillon and Her Son,” the first single from their third full-length Always Foreign, the band shows that they don’t even need six minutes to pull you up above the mountaintops; they can do it in just over two. The track begins with a propulsive bassline, gradually inviting each other member to enter in true TWIABP fashion, ultimately taking off and reaching max altitude just in time to bounce and bash through one of the most jubilant passages in their entire catalog. Vocalists David Bello and Katie Dvorak sound more in-sync than ever here, working harmoniously together and never once stepping over each other. Dvorak’s triumphant synth lines are euphorically catchy here as well, providing the same vital contrast as they did on a classic like “Heartbeat in the Brain,” but with more of an epic, Crying-esque quality to them.
It’s amazing to see this band actually gaining energy and enthusiasm as their career moves forward, sounding tighter as a unit and more excited than ever. At this point, TWIABP are only tangentially “emo,” and even if they continue to get lumped in with that crowd during this release cycle, there’s no argument that any of their counterparts can possibly contend with their cumulative chops.
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Eli Enis | @eli_enis
