BRNDA (pronounced Brenda) is a self proclaimed “serious band” and serious bands talk about serious things, like going to get food from your fridge late at night. At least that’s what they’re doing on the song “Snacks” off of their upcoming album Year of The Manatee, set for release on Babe City Records at the end of this month. The D.C band’s sound is an even play on the tight but raucous style of Parquet Courts and the understated expansiveness of a Reverie Sound Revue or Broken Social Scene.
As much as one would like to believe that the song is only about food, lines like “however you are holding me now your knees won’t always be there to shore me / however you are holding me now i’ll warn you wait before you attempt me” suggest that there might be more going on lyrically. That seems to be the trend with this song and with BRNDA in general; things come off funny or simple, but have the potential to mean way more.
This sentiment is channeled through the song’s instrumentation as well. Once “Snacks” gets going a dancey drum beat is tempered by battling rhythm guitars, all underneath short Melt-Banana-esque vocal bursts: “ I hadded a dime!/ I hadded a snack!”. The almost dissonant ooo’s about a minute into the song push it right up against the edge of cacophonous. To key in on all of the songs individual elements will make each of them sound too simple and letting the whole track wash over you will do the same, but finding those in between points where you’re hearing everything just enough will make you privy to a surprisingly sophisticated song.
