Every time I re-listen to a great album, I wish I could re-live the moment when I heard it for the first time. The emotion it elicits, the wonder it inspires and the absolute excitement of knowing you are listening to greatness cannot be replicated. The feeling diminishes with each subsequent playing, but it's the first listen that one never forgets. It's a rare reaction, one where the emotional response is unforgettable and, unfortunately, sometimes unrepeatable.
Lucky Dumpling, the major label debut by the California quartet Moonpools and Caterpillars, elicits such a reaction. The moment this album begins you realize you are listening to something very special, very unique. So much so, in fact, that to describe this band as eclectic might be a tremendous understatement. Moonpools and Caterpillars display a range and maturity so rare in fledgling bands, experimenting with both vocal and musical styles such that each song is fresh and inventive while never seeming out of place.
In terms of current bands, Moonpools and Caterpillars seem to be heavily influenced by the ethereal and wistful sounds of both Edie Brickell and The Sundays, with vocalist Kimi Ward Encarnacion emulating both the imagination and honesty of the former and the simple beauty of the latter. Unlike many young bands, however, Moonpools and Caterpillars are not reduced into being merely an extension of the bands which have influenced them. Instead, the band seems to thrive where their predecessors have been held back by musical limitations.
The songs on Lucky Dumpling range from energetic and pulsating to gentle and rhythmic without losing any momentum. The album opens full-throttle with the catchy and infectious "Hear", a song which could easily be one of the finest singles to be released this year. From there, the album changes gears a bit, as Kimi's sweet textured vocals blend with intricate and soulful sounds on "Ren". Rather than disrupt the album's flow, however, the band's juxtaposition between soft and hard is what makes Lucky Dumpling such an amazing record, at times grabbing the listener with rapid fire guitars and strong melodies and at others bringing things down a notch to reveal resplendent and delicate melodies, a mix of quiet twists and expressive turns. There are no throwaways here, just a fifty minute package of miniature pop gems.
If one were to attempt to find a theme running through each of Lucky Dumpling's thirteen tracks, it would be that of a journey. The band's lyrics describe the journey one takes through life, love and sorrow, always poignant, yet never bordering on the generic, a mistake many other songwriters fall into far too often. Moonpools and Caterpillars show how ideas can be expressed in vivid and original fashion with brilliant use of metaphors and imagery. This is never more apparent than on "Crazy Old World", the beautiful and delicate track which closes out the album with lyrical maturity and unusual depth.
Intricate records like this are all too rare, which makes a band like Moonpools and Caterpillars all the more special. Lucky Dumpling, in lyrical fashion, takes the listener on an odyssey of sorts, being both dynamic and pulsating, contemplative and brooding, infectious and fun.
