A project from a group of old friends,
Lo Tom is a confluence of members of West Coast indie rock stalwarts
Pedro the Lion and
Starflyer 59. A disarmingly casual approach marks
Lo Tom's self-titled debut and the group themselves describe their M.O. as simply an excuse to "make music together and have fun" over a couple of long weekends. From the record's relaxed feel and quartet's obvious musical chemistry, they appear to have succeeded. While
Lo Tom claim that no one in particular is at the helm, it's
Pedro frontman
David Bazan's ragged voice ringing out over the meaty riffing of bandmates TW Walsh (also of
Pedro) and Jason Martin (
Starflyer 59) while drummer Trey Many (
Starflyer 59,
Velour 100) keeps solid rhythm.
Bazan himself sticks to bass, offering a respite from the more electronic-oriented style of his solo offerings. While it would be a stretch to call these eight songs straight-up fun, it's about as fun as
David Bazan gets, and there is something pleasingly familiar about hearing him belt out weary musings over a wall of crunchy electric guitars, something that harkens back to both bands' late-'90s/early-2000s heyday. The production is robust and clean, letting highlights like "Covered Wagon" and "Overboard" shine by their own unfettered construction. By that same token,
Lo Tom don't necessarily take any real chances here, but that doesn't seem to be the point. These are veteran players who know how to run a traditional two-guitars, bass, and drums rock combo and the result is a comfortable, well-crafted listen that will likely appeal to fans of their primary outfits. ~ Timothy Monger