Bethany Cosentino is the lead singer and songwriter for L.A. trio Best Coast. She operates a lot like Nathan Williams of Wavves. Both make surf rock, A.M. Gold and punk rock, and both love writing songs about weed. And while Beth hasn't had an onstage meltdown yet, we can only assume it's a matter of time considering the content in Best Coast's debut album. "Crazy for You" isn't short on song about being idle and lost love, in fact, it's the perfect album for summer time introspection.
"Boyfriend" leads off the album with a lo-fi ballad that finds Cosentino longing for her knight in shining armor. It's one of a few songs that actually has something positive for the male crowd as they tend to get painted as jerks in this album, and rightfully so. But like other songs, "The End" included, all Beth wants is to be loved, it seems like a lot to ask for, especially for someone who is painted as being lazy, lacking direction, and loves her weed.
"Goodbye" and "I Want To" solidify the straight forward narration of this album. Not much if anything is cryptic, in fact, anybody could grasp the emotions of this album, they're all basically the same, much like the songs on here. And while it isn't the most original album in the world, it's refreshing in this age of indie rock to find an album that's not hard to grasp and actually goes down smooth.
The album is a half hour of fun. Hell, the longest song on this album is a whopping three minutes and two seconds, and it happens to be the best cut of the album and probably the best song of the year. "Honey" is a sexy, sleek, slow grooving track that puts a change up in the album and begs for repeated listenings. Needless to say it's a nice change of pace for the album, even if it sounds like a Cranberries tune.
When all is said and done though, Best Coast have put out a solid debut. It's not going to change the landscape of music at all, but as far as jangle pop and lo-fi music is concerned, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better album that displays it well. Punk rock, surf rock, your mom's 70's preset station, there's something here for everyone. And damn it, isn't it about time for something we can all agree on.
**** out of *****
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