Yeasayer // Amen & Goodbye

Yeasayer

Amen & Goodbye

Mute Records 

4/5 stars

Brooklyn's Yeasayer is a bit of a musical Magellan, circling the globe for ingredients to spice its sonic stew. The East meets West dynamic is very much in play on Amen & Goodbye, the quintet's first offering since 2012's Fragrant World. Their fourth album has a brighter, poppier vibe compared to its predecessor, but would still be considered adventurous by most standards. Lead single "I Am Chemistry" changes phases from earthy to airy as it caravans through the psychedelic desert the band has often made their oasis. Many of the other tracks follow suit, embellished with exotic textures without depriving Western ears of the song structure and hooks to which they are accustomed. "Silly Me" throws some oud at you, but it feels hardly "oud" of place within the framework of an indie dance song. The band visits stranger territories elsewhere (the buzzing, crystalline ambience of "Prophecy Gun," the otherworldly theremins on the serene chamber pop of "Uma"), but always seems to return to base. – Matt Swanseger