Black Eagle Child – Go Around, Again

Melodies plant themselves deep within Jantz’s fertile terra forma; Go Around, Again transforming repetitious thought into catchy experimentation. Album opener “Sun Cylinder” walks with a cowboy strut, influenced by the mechanical timing of the celestial body that bares its name. Jantz chases away the prairie dogs and rustles up his prize cattle as he greets the rising sun with a cheek-to-cheek smile. “Running Around the Room” explores unbridled youth, floorboards creaking as a child sneaks to grab a handful of cookies to fuel a day’s worth of hand claps, pot banging, and puffy-cheeked kazoo hums. Despite the childish exclamations that bookend “Phrases of the Moon,” the contemplative composition embraces solitude from all distractions. Consisting of subdued banjo strums and somber bass drum, “Phrases of the Moon” not only riffs on the repetitive motif of Go Around, Again, it grounds the album’s narrative as Jantz balances joy and introspection. Finale “Eighteen and Six” returns from the brink, bringing with it exuberant syncopation in the vein of Mark McGuire and Dustin Wong while recapturing the happy-go-lucky mood that pervades Go Around, Again.

This is a new phase in the Black Eagle Child canon. Michael Jantz ponies up to pop without sacrificing vision or experimentation, proving both can gaily co-exist. Go Around, Again is peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth; a taste worth savoring with each timely lick of the tongue hitting the hard palette. – Justin Spicer