Sounds Like Fun

Sounds Like Fun is located in Portland, not the sunniest of locales, but what it offers here is a bit of musical sunshine. The band consists of two ex-members of the Birthday/Orisha collective, guitarist Anthony Thomas Schatz and drummer Gavin Bowes, along with keyboardist Anton Hougardy. All three sing and provide some nice, tight harmonies. The sound is based in pop rock, with an indie feel, but this is definitely not shoegazer stuff. For instance, one song contains the phrase “I’m not interested in living in a prison / whether made by man or by the human condition” sung over and over. That nicely captures the attitude of SLF, which also can be summed up as “We’re having a good time with this, so come join in.” Pick this CD up. It’ll put a smile on your face because it’s so, well, fun.