Painted Palms
Nothing Lasts Long EP
Reese Donohue and Chris Prudhomme make up the psych-pop duo Painted Palms, who are known for their ’60s-inspired retrospective sound, in the same vein as Tame Impala or Kishi Bashi. Although their self-released Nothing Lasts Long EP doesn’t attempt anything radically new, it is engaging from the catchy first track, “Hypnotic.” Starting off slow, Donohue teases, “If you’ve got a thing to say, say it now,” before layers fill in the empty space and contort the song into a full-bodied jam. The rest of the record is softly textured with falsetto harmonies mixed with breezy synth lines and pattering drums. Donohue and Prudhomme are talented musicians but certainly not expressive lyricists, as enforced by the wordy redundancy of “Over Me,” a meditation on the transient nature of existence, and “Upper Floors,” a woozy depiction of losing control. Painted Palms doesn’t present any real audacity that would make for a great album, but the band does nicely compensate for their lack of attitude with plenty of musical aptitude.
