After the ambitious, darkly thematic song cycle
III,
Brightside comes as something of a tonal reset for
the Lumineers. Embracing a more spontaneous approach, the Denver indie folk duo lets their ragged edges show on a record that values the raw creative spark above all else. Recorded during two sessions in upstate New York with returning producer
Simone Felice and engineer/co-producer
David Baron,
Brightside sees bandmates
Wesley Schultz and
Jeremiah Fraites harnessing their core energy over nine tracks that are somehow fresher and more rough-hewn than anything they'd previously released. Take for example "Birthday," an appealingly loose folk-pop jaunt which pauses mid-song for a bit of off-the-cuff in-studio applause or "Never Really Mine," a raw midtempo banger that relies almost entirely on a rhythm electric guitar before building into a cathartic roar on its final chorus. Most of the songs on
Brightside have that same sense of scaled-down immediacy and it's a nice change from a band who, despite their minimalist format, have more or less existed as a stadium act over the previous decade. The easy melodic hooks that drew fans to
the Lumineers in the first place remain, but the combination of stronger material and looser performances make for a strong fourth outing. ~ Timothy Monger