Daryl Johns
got his start playing jazz bass before sliding into a sideman role with soft rock revivalists like
Drugdealer
and
Mac DeMarco
. His self-titled debut album was released by
DeMarco
's label, and the two artists share a kind of good-natured wooziness that gives their pop songs a warped sweetness. At times sounding like
Ariel Pink
if he'd never heard of
Kennth Anger
,
Johns
gives his simple melodies some odd twists -- messing with the pitch at random on "Corner Store," running his voice through filters on most songs, and coming across like a '70s heartthrob on the wonderful "I'm So Serious." About half of the record follows a similar template of cheesy, creepy '70s pop pastiches, played with nimble skill and hooky as can be. The other half of the album is another ball of wax entirely. On it,
leans hard into his background in smooth jazz, pairing his fretless bass with skittering drums and twinkling guitar lines on a series of songs that show off his skills as a musician. ~ Tim Sendra