Yesan Damen

Chronos/Kairos

Yesan Damen's MySpace

Effortlessly pretty indie-pop just doesn’t seem to be as abundant these days. Perhaps the music scene’s still reeling from the death throes of the Elephant Six collective and the time not so long ago – ok, a decade is perhaps an eternity in indie-music culture - when it seemed that an endless stream of melodically mellifluous bands were going to ride PBS-styled pan flutes, winsome twinkling keyboards, and boy/girl vocal harmonies to global domination. Those who think back fondly on long gone bands like Masters of the Hemisphere, Beulah or the roster of now defunct label March Records can take heart, however, in the wispy pop wonderment of new Seattle indie-pop combo Yesan Damen’s sophomore album, Chronos/Kairos.

Although officially a trio, the core group of vocalist/guitarist Danny Kwak, bassist Arick Gouwerok and drummer Michael Lerner is fleshed out to glorious effect throughout Chronos/Kairos. Strings? Check. Flutes? Check. Trumpets? Check. The band’s expansive instrumental lineup even had me scouring the web to find out what a changgo is - an hour glass shaped Korean drum as it turns out. Credit is due to producer Zak Dewey that none of the tunes feel overstuffed and Kwak’s Matthew Sweet styled vocal melodies are strong enough to avoid being drowned out by the bevy of instrumentation. Alternating between buzzy synthesized pop and folksier acoustic material, Chronos/Kairos shiny musical moods belie an occasionally dark lyrical heart (“Wow, the water’s awful cold here/And you know it’s shark infested/Oh, well I’m drowning, drowning/It was clearly my intention”). Although a few of the album’s ten track’s meander into forgettable amiability, there are enough highlights - the instantly anthemic group sing along “Whoa!,” album closing psych-ballad “Canons of Devotion” – to easily cement Yesan Deman as a band worth keeping a close eye on. 

Listen to "Whoa!" from Chronos/Kairos

Listen to "Canons of Devotion" from Chronos/Kairos