Everybody’s A Good Dog by Diane Coffee
“Everybody’s A Good Dog,” the sophomore album from Diane Coffee, is no stranger to the modern rock tradition of the throwback. So much so, in fact, that at times you may be tempted to write it off as parody if it weren’t so good. Diane Coffee is the baby of Foxygen alum Shaun Fleming, but while Foxygen drew heavily from Seventies rock and glam, Fleming’s new work is infused with a strong Motown and soul sensibility. This influence couldn’t be any less subtle: there are metal xylophones, soaring gospel-esque harmony, and even a “shooby-doo-wah” thrown in from time to time.
This isn’t to say, however, that “Everybody’s a Good Dog” is predictable--there are sudden tempo changes, flares of syncopation, and other curveballs--or that it’s devoid of musical integrity. The songs are impeccably written, and the production is toasted to a perfect golden brown, with no voice, whether vocal or instrumental, given any more or less prominence than it deserves. And the album has an arc, as I believe any good album should: pressure builds in the last few songs as the music becomes infused with the grit of hard rock, only to release on the last track, which bids the listener farewell with a slow-dance sentimentality.
Check out the single “Everyday” above. Possibly the most straightforward track on the record, it’s sung with the simultaneous ache and petite mischief of Diana Ross or Aretha Franklin, and frolicks in the well-worn lyrical theme of scorned love. And when you get a chance, check out the whole album (available on Amazon and iTunes); the gentle yet vaguely-pained melody of “Soon to Be, Won’t to Be,” coupled with the piercing vocal effect with which it’s delivered, especially does it for me.