Parquet Courts are a four piece, originally from Texas, now relocated to Brooklyn. Having only released their debut album last year in 2012, they’ve come a long way in such a short time and seem to have benefitted from word of mouth rather than press hype. ‘Tally All The Things That You Broke’ is a five track EP that forms a bridge between the debut ‘Light Up Gold’ and their next full length recording. The evidence here suggests a great LP could be on the way, and these five songs are impressive enough to encourage new listeners to check out the first album. The infectiously energetic ‘You’ve Got Me Wonderin’ Now’ runs on slacker vibes that contrast with its tight beat, stoner-punk would be a good way of describing it. In fact, it’s not unlike Pavement but with the added bonus of a noisy recorder part underlining the chorus. The upbeat ‘Descend (The Way)’ has a similar no-nonsense appeal, while the relentless ‘The More It Works’ takes pleasure in repetition.
It’s clear that they’ve either been listening to a lot of Fall records or bands that were inspired by The Fall, and the aptly named ‘Fall On Yr Face’ is almost like a homage to Mark E Smith‘s early work. The influence can also be heard in the jagged riff that repeats throughout the disjointed slacker hip hop of ‘He’s Seeing Paths’, which also brings to mind what a collaboration between a The Beta Band and Beck might have sounded like. Although it’s brilliantly goofy and undeniably enjoyable, maybe it should stop at around the four minute mark. For many it will be a good introduction to this band, since they have only recently come to people’s attention. For others who have known about them for a while, it promises more great things for the future. [Rating: 4]
