Emerging out of the hippie enclave of Asheville, NC, Pink Beds dare to shake up the monotonous sea of indie rock with the band’s new sophomore album, Spare Key To A Memory. Drawing on influences from psychedelic rock to trance electronic to guilty pleasure pop, Pink Beds have unlocked new doors into the band’s next chapter.
The gradual intro to album-opener “O Love” resembles the feeling of walking into a room as you draw closer and closer to a distant sound. Once inside, listeners are dropped straight into an indie dream-pop trance that flows uninterrupted into the next song, “2 LUV”—the first of two sequels on the album.
Comparisons to The Strokes are immediate and not unwarranted by the third track “Call Me When You’re Gone”. The song’s refrain “Where did you go? / I didn’t know / Where did you go? / Could you call me when you’re gone?” is at the heart of the central mystery surrounding Spare Key To A Memory. Just when you’ve followed Pink Beds into one stylistic enclosure, the band vanishes in the next track, transported to another room by their universal key of influences. Sometimes the band doesn’t even wait until the next song, turning on a dime on “Forgiven” to cut the dance party short and enjoy some psychedelic ambiance as LCD turns to LSD.
Album standout “The Word (DANCE)” is where it all comes together. The influences from ’00s New York indie rock find their way to the dance floor as trippy synthesizers dart between eardrums and speakers. All of the rooms are connected here, as Pink Beds blend all of their influences into something new that rises above the nameless, faceless blur of generic indie rock emanating from NYC to L.A. and not enough places in between. If they had a big label behind them—rather than seizing the means of production and self-releasing in true DIY fashion—”The Word” would be all over Sirius Radio to the point we’d all be disgusted by it.
“A groove-laden take on the more isolating side of a night on the dance floor,” is how the band described the track. “The change from alienation to acceptance parallels not only being more comfortable in a new environment, but also in new life circumstances.”
Pink Beds — “The Word (DANCE) [Official Video]
Fortunately, even after 3:36 Pink Beds still aren’t done with “The Word” and tack on the instrumental “DANCE II”. This two-minute addendum underscores the quartet of multi-hyphenates who all wear multiple hats to make Pink Beds’ dreams into sonic reality: Aaron Aiken (vocals, guitar, keys, synths), Jackson Van Horn (guitar, keys, synths), Logan Hall (bass, synths), and Ryan Sargent (drums, percussion). In a live setting, this vamp could get stretched out for a solid ten minutes by any jam band, but instead Pink Beds have to keep moving as they have more rooms to conquer.
The band’s compass of contemporary influences then heads south, way south, from NYC for a rush of Australian psych-pop influence on “Masterpiece”. (Tame Impala to name the most obvious, though far from the only, see: Beans, Babe Rainbow, Pond, etc.) The track has another built-in jam vehicle (Key included) as it gets washed out in distorted tremolo that feels like riding a soundwave itself.
Following another breakout from the dancefloor to kaleidoscopic headspace on “Incredible”, Spare Key To A Memory closes with “From A Distance”. Rather than more pulsating beats or hallucinatory guitar effects, the song is a minimalist call out into the void by singer Aaron Aiken. The brilliantly-tracked album is sent off with a gentle moan and abstract synths as Pink Beds close the final door of the album like it’s the ending of The Godfather. Just like Kay, we’re left on the other side of the passageway wondering what it is we’ve witnessed and what it is we believe.
Stream Pink Beds’ new album Spare Key To A Memory below or on your preferred platform or order it on CD and vinyl from the band’s store. Pink Beds have tour dates throughout the Southeast stretching into August including sets at White Squirrel Festival (5/25, Brevard, NC) and Fredfest (7/20, Singers Glen, VA) and a variety of headlining dates. For tickets and a full list of concerts visit the band’s website.
Pink Beds — Spare Key To A Memory
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