Amaterasu, the first solo release from Swedish indie rock collective
David & the Citizens namesake
David Fridlund is a bare-bones lesson in pop science. The 14 heavily deconstructed, sometimes urgent piano-led rockers are reminiscent (especially the infectious "Busride & Carsick") of
Girls Can Tell-era
Spoon. Co-produced with his brother Joel, and utilizing the lovely voice of fellow
Citizen and longtime partner Sara Culler,
Fridlund has crafted a record that strips away the flesh of the medium without losing any of its humanity. While there is a definite British Invasion sensibility to many of the song structures on
Amaterasu ("April & May" blends the Tin Pan Alley musings of Sunny Afternoon-era
Kinks with the
Beatles classic "Girl"),
Fridlund channels fellow contemporary Scandinavians like
Sondre Lerche and
the Kings of Convenience as well, peppering his songs with intricate string parts and the occasional moody saxophone. This is an icy, naked, and wholly engrossing debut. ~ James Christopher Monger