Words by Jason Lee; Photo by Ry Marie
The single dropped by Brandi and the Alexanders today has us feeling totally seen cuz some days it feels like we excel at being perfectly imperfect more than anything (debatably better than being “imperfectly imperfect”) with a timely reminder that imperfection is what makes us truly human and who wants to read a music blog written by a robot anyway?
“Perfectly Imperfect” opens with a vintage-sounding drum machine that sounds like it’s set to a bossanova or rhumba preset like you’d expect to hear on one of those old home organs with the on-off rhythm switches but which equally sounds like something you’d hear on an ’80s Hall & Oates hit the point being the drum machine sounds very little like actual drums nor an actual bossanova beat but it’s cool sounding nonetheless and has a distinct musical personality in no small part due to there very same “imperfect” qualities thus making it (wait for it…) perfectly imperfect and we’re only a few seconds into the song…
…at which point a drum fill leads into some tight live riddim work supplied by Eric Gottlieb complete with subtly accented hi-hat weaving its way in and out of the beat box and suddenly what may’ve sounded a bit clunky on its own now sounds straight-up fire as part of the overall musical texture which also features a guitar line so insidiously catchy it’s like a funky earworm wriggled off its hook and into your cochlea alongside a second guitar playing a staccato stepwise melody (guitars on the single are played by Noah Richelson and Andy Paul, the latter of whom also handles keyboard duties)…
…and then once the hook subsides Brandi Thompson addresses the listener over a jazzy two-chord vamp: “I’m watching you / pulling down your sleeves to cover scars / you can hide them on the outside / but the inner ones are much more hard” which far from being condemnatory is more about expressing empathy as made clear in the chorus’s refrain of “baby, you’re perfectly imperfect” and Brandi just needs you to stop your faking and “need[s] to see the real you” as further reinforced via music that radiates warmth and humanity thanks to Brandi’s merry band of Alexanders.
Did someone say tasty licks? Check. Lush harmonies? Check. A compelling fusion of soul, funk, pop, R&B and gospel? Check. A spacey breakdown section complete with 60’s-girl-group-style dramatic recitation and oohs-and-ahhs over swelling ambient synth chords and dubby production effects? Check. A climactic coda that makes room for a mini Chic-style funk interlude and some impressive vocal pyrotechnics and equally impressive shredding in the form of a psych-rock style guitar solo outro? Check.
And while this may not fit the formula for writing a “perfect” pop song today especially one aimed at highly delineated and segregated audience demographics, Brandi and the Alexanders take a more old-school, big-tent democratic approach to their songwriting and thanks goodness for it cuz while democracy may be famously messy and overall imperfect (especially lately) it stillsure beats autocracy and the “perfection” demanded by fascist and other dictatorial political systems…
…which is not to claim that listening to Brandi and the Alexanders will stave off the Nazis but it couldn’t hurt and at least it’ll help you loosen up and not worry so much about your own imperfections whether they be unsightly ring around the collar or alien hand syndrome or being a closeted brony or contracting HSV and really ya oughta stop shaming yourself so much cuz shame leads to fear and fear makes you compliant and more pliant to the power that be but heck if you wanna be pliant then come see Brandi & the Alexanders play a single release party this coming Tuesday 2/27 at Mercury Lounge and for all you early risers don’t worry it’s an early show (doors at 6) with Lizzie and the Makers opening which is gonna be a great pairing and it’d be a real shame to miss it…
Final notes: Brandi and the Alexanders started about a decade ago as an 11-piece R&B cover band. Brandi Thompson is a transplanted Chicagoan who’s worked as a backing vocalist for fellow artists like Nick Waterhouse, Aloe Blacc, and various Daptone artists alongside being a onetime member of the Atomic Funk Project and the world famous Cafe Wha? house band and if you wanna read up on some of BATA’s past work we recommend you take a look here and here and here…