Dumb is the new smart. Don’t believe us? Look no further than this ridiculously prolific Vancouver quartet, who have somehow cracked the code on including quality with their quantity. Over the last two years, Dumb have self-released three albums of quirky, frenetic post-punk. While others might go stale, however, the band seems to break new ground with each new idea.
Enter Seeing Green, the band’s first full-length for Mint Records. The album’s 14 tracks were produced by Jordan Koop (Wolf Parade, You Say Party, the Courtneys) at the Noise Floor on Gabriola Island, BC. While it’s the band’s first time working on this relatively larger scale, Koop’s production has simply crystallized their ideas.
The result is a batch of songs that sound both urgent and timeless, referencing classic post-punk projects like DEVO, Pylon or the Mekons while placing them nicely within the pantheon of Canadian contemporaries like Ought, Fountain and Freak Heat Waves.
Musically, Seeing Green’s jagged guitars and punchy rhythm section lay a perfect basis for their lyrics, all of which explore the inherent absurdity of modern life. As frontman Franco Rossino says, “The album revolves around a confused and angry young person unknowingly being tossed around by the same western capitalist conditioning that we’ve all been raised on. Green in this sense refers to being a novice, as well as to money, envy, and growth. It’s meant to be somewhat of a self-aware exaggeration of some feelings in our every day lives that we often don’t want to admit to and may even lie to ourselves about.”
At times paranoid and other times exuberant, Seeing Green dares you to dance and deconstruct. It’s a trim, explosive collection of songs that suggests these four will be cranking out hits for years to come. It’s time to get Dumb.
Dumb is Franco Rossino (guitar, vocals), Shelby Vredik (bass), Nick Short (guitar) and Pipé Morelli (drums).