I Believe Young The Giant Has a Hit On Its Hands

Irvine, California's Young The Giant has "Home of the Strange" on its way in August. Until then we'll have to settle for a quick bite of "Something To Believe In", a ditty perfect for those nights when you're in the company of witches whipping up a batch of their eye of newt specialties. This number blends in what Young The Giant does best. Jacob Tilley drops down guitar melodies in the right spots, a surefire appetite enrichment to be sure. Are you hot for a little keyboard action? Eric Cannata has the fix you've been itching to have satisfied. Maybe you like macho chants. Young The Giant's there to indulge your guilty pleasure barbaric utterances set to a slightly hair-raising tempo. Vocalist Sameer Gadhia maintains excellent composure, never once sending us into a state of undue alarm. What an asset for someone who's apparently guilty of talking to the sun. To his credit he does admit the dialogue does get old after a time. He implores us to break free of the basement full of demons and break any mental chain enslaving us. The suggestion works mainly because Sameer does an honorable job as advice counselor. I get the feeling he's referencing the band's new song when he says, "I'm a songbird with a brand new track." Give him his due for getting right down to business. Sameer also speaks to the moon if the lyric sheet veers in the direction of accuracy. In so doing he becomes pale as a ghost in the afternoon. Francois Comtois lays down drum beats that hoist the sail "Something To Believe In" so the pep barometer inches ever higher. Payam Doostzadeh injects hot off the grill bass spices into this union of midnight hour witchcraft not short on beguiling intentions. Got to hand it to the boys. They don't lean heavily on any one instrument to get the message across. Employed as N'Awlins styled jambalayaa, "Something To Believe In" comes out of the oven as a keen specialty dish tailor made to serve discriminating and non-judgmental palates alike. The macho element underscores belief in one's individual purpose, not a bad lesson for all stripes of human to learn. You don't get the gift wrapped overblown video to accompany it but, for this song, minimalism makes for an ideal pairing of gentle reintroduction and motivation cranking alpha male chest beating. The band's latest doesn't move so fast that you can't appreciably digest these pearls of wisdom. You do get a chance to let the combined talent whisk you away to your centered core where believing in something despite the obligatory long odds would be exceedingly possible. Due to its purring combustion engine, "Something To Believe In" has me believing bigger career chapters are just around the corner for the Irvine-based quintet.