Tennis – Ritual in Repeat
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A few years ago, I heard a lot of buzz around the husband and wife duo, Tennis, from Denver, but somehow I never got around to really introducing myself to the band. Needless to say, I missed not one, but two albums from the group, as Ritual in Repeat marks their third full-length studio effort of groovy indie pop dance music, and it seems like this time around their challenge is to create an album with more that just a few killer singles.
They start the album out with a slow opener in “Night Vision,” which has these tinny drums that roll along from the very beginning. Alaina Moore’s sugarcoated vocals dance around the drums and a bob-your-head-to-it bass line, while the track builds up to its catchy chorus. It’s a good little warm-up number, but it gives me the impression that the band is holding back. While the chorus is a burst of energy, the rest of the song comes across as just filling space before the band really gets going. The real song that catches your attention and begs you to get on your feet is “Never Work For Free,” which follows the first track. Instantly, from the second the first drumbeat hits you square in the face, Tennis just takes off. You get these electric guitar riffs streaming in with just the right amount of rock to balance out the jumpy drums while Moore’s vocals get playful, pushing themselves for the chorus while a backing vocal track of quick “ohs” loop over. It’s simply a great pop song that will get stuck in your head for long periods of time.
Other solid numbers come later on and are scattered around in the scheme of the album. Immediately you get to “I’m Callin’” after the first few tracks and you’re taken back to the seventies in a little bit of a disco vibe as synths bee-bop through the song. Further into the thick of it you have a more lo-fi tinged number in “Solar on the Rise.” The slightly gritty guitar on this number that cuts through the fuzzy drums and vocals makes the track stick out from the rest as you get down the last stretch of jams.
When you listen to this album all the way through, while cleaning your house, or doing your every day chores, it’s easy to let it play all the way through while dancing away—Tennis will keep you doing just that. However, when you go back to listen to each individual track, there’s a handful of songs that stand above the rest on Ritual in Repeat. It’s up to you to find them.