Named for the building that served as the bandmembers' longtime base before life events took them to separate residences,
Bell House is the nostalgic second LP by Kansas City's
Shy Boys. It follows their promising 2014 debut by four years. In the meantime, the indie pop group expanded from a three- to a five-piece, signed with Polyvinyl, and opted for higher-fidelity production that spotlights their lush, '60s-styled vocal harmonies. To underscore this, they even open the album with an a cappella number bathed in hot sand and pastels, though the song is about what was growing outside the bedroom window. They swap the
Beach Boys harmonic influence for a
Crosby, Stills & Nash one on "Tragic Loss," but throughout these and other musical hat-tips, they continue to establish a Polyvinyl-worthy, contemporary sound of their own. It's one that's anchored in an immediate guitar pop with an intimate feel and persistently sweet but discontented melodies. The bouncy "Basement," for instance, claps along to lyrics like "Got a wife and a dog and I'm living in my mom's basement," while reflecting its self-consciousness in nuanced chord progressions. They make room for diversions, too, settling into a more sinuous indie rock on "Take the Doggie" (about a neglected neighbor dog), and slowing things down for the plaintive grievances of "Disconnect," a piano-based track. Even the hazier songs have a melodic and harmonic allure, though, a trait that bodes well for any band. With ten tracks coming in at under 25 minutes,
Bell House almost goes by too fast for its richness, like sample-sized bakery treats that deserve a full course. ~ Marcy Donelson