GutterPutter

Since 2014, a certain Canadian band has earned themselves a bit of online stardom. Men I Trust are from Montreal and they have won some recognition for their completely local-made music. By that, I mean their production epitomises bedroom pop where the lo-fi recording paves the way to dreamy reverbs and a more minimalistic form of layering. Particularly, 2019’s Oncle Jazz breaks the online space for its sophisti-pop influences and it rocks over 7 million views and a cult following who deemed it to be a classic in waiting. The band therefore are on a bit of a roll and they are now a household name for the genre at the time of writing.

Equus Asinus is Men I Trust’s latest album and while it still sticks with the heightened use of reverbs, it proves to be like fanciful icing on a diabetes-riddled birthday cake. Underneath its calming facade with its overt soft rock direction comes the meandering lounge-like atmosphere. One that persists as if it’s second-hand smoke after the funereal ‘Paul’s Theme’ or even the epilogue of ‘What Matters Most’. Much of the record has a problem where its studio tinkering sought to hide away its one-dimensional performance. In ‘All my candles’, the more faded backing instrumentations that were intended to chill out instead dulls into the listening experience and it persists well enough. Or ‘The Landkeeper’ as the whispery vocals fail to hide away the drony violins that lingered its vibrato a bit too long.

Much of Equus Asinus gives off the impression of it being influenced by Fleetwood Mac with the low-key drumming and simpler guitar playing. While it explains very much the soft rock style, the similarity feels both derivative and yet shallow at the same time. It’s one thing to listen to the intro in ‘I Come With Mud’ and think of it as the famous British-American pop rock band’s direction being updated to fit with online music in its delivery. It’s another to bring it in a way that comes off as “sleepy” and I don’t mean it in a good way. It’s more so along the likes of being boring and substanceless. Its acoustic inclusion in ‘Frost Bite’, ‘Unlike Anything’, and ‘Purple Box’ lacks the certain identity needed to stand out on its own. A female vocal performance and a bit of finger playing? Isn’t that something that the likes of boygenius are known for doing? Yes, and there’s not much else about these additions to make the record a worthwhile check when it comes to deep cuts.

The issues further compound itself through the unremarkable songwriting and generally evocative lyricism. Granted, Equus Asinus is almost entirely made by the band themselves as does virtually their entire discography. It is however a bit disappointing to see that much of the songs blend in with one another a tad bit too easily. Take the ironically-titled ‘I Don’t Like Music’ as one example. You would have hoped that its cymbal-like guitar plucks would carry it through to make for a standout, yet it only appears as a substitute for a chorus. When the vocals’ reverb makes it fuzzier to listen to, it’s slightly more challenging to make out what was sung out loud and it thus leaves the track in the vicinity of being indistinguishable from its neighbours. ‘Bethlehem’ and ‘Burrow’ are guilty of these issues as well.

It’s not to say that the entirety of the album is just over-polished garbage. There are some good reasons for why the band is as beloved as they are now and then a bit more with their artistic inclinations. If the soft rock and lounge direction are there to soothe, ‘Heavenly Flow’ is the high point of which keep an ear on for its relatively clearer vocal mixing, the melodic interplay between the guitar and the piano, and its complimentary slow tempo. ‘Girl’ at least has a noteworthy French verse that harkens back to the band’s Quebec roots which is a nice touch. The last little compliment I would like to leave is a relative surprise and it is that ‘Moon 2’, despite being entirely instrumental, has an atmospheric delicacy to it that is more unique than simply going for an echoey type of piano playing. It’s psychedelic and yet nostalgic at the same time and it’s one that might linger in your head for a while. 

Equus Asinus is an album that, for the most part, didn’t quite make full use of the band’s strengths to put it nicely. If you give Oncle Jazz a listen to for a comparison, you can tell that it’s a more lively kind of record that’s unafraid to revamp its key influence to fit today’s trends without compromising on their identity. 24 tracks compared to 14 on Equus Asinus would have been bloated and there’s no doubt that there are some songs there that would be considered as a dud. Yet, the songwriting there is more flexible with how the verses and refrains are arranged, the diversity and interpretations of sophisti-pop are more expansive, the production more varied, and the technicality is jazzier with little compromise. To put it simply, Oncle Jazz feels like a more rewarding listen and it feels like a better testimony to what Men I Trust can pull off with a twee album cover to boot.
So, what do I make of Equus Asinus? It’s ultimately a boring listen. It’s more or less a c-list soft rock attempt drenched in what amateur producers thought would make for a good listen. Its influence fails to kick off, the performance generally passable but uncreative, and the structure lacking. The band’s fandom are likely pleased to find that they are releasing records at a relatively frequent rate. The question is, will this hit off with the online space? I doubt it. Indie pop fans might find it forgettable, the soft rock stans would think it imitative, even the aficionados might write it off as a missed swing in its potential. It could have been much better is what I wanted to say after all.

1.6/5