Pas/Cal

I Was Raised on Matthew, Mark, Luke & Laura (Le Grand Magistery)

By Erin Wolf
Published: July 26th, 2008 | 9:00am

Chamber pop has always been an eyebrow raiser, but it seems like Brian Wilson and Phil Spector have smoothly paved the way for musicians who have traveled down this road. Calling cards, such as lush instrumentation and emphasis on seemingly effortless hooks, have made Detroit’s Pas/Cal’s place in this genre pretty apparent; but their wry lyricism has blocked them off from the pure sunlight that the Beach Boys were so fond of reveling in.

Pas/Cal's first LP — although the band's seven years has seen multiple EP and split-single releases — was recorded over the course of three years, and is entitled I Was Raised On Matthew, Mark, Luke & Laura. The soprano-esque male vocals, bouncy synths, organs, pianos, and strings contradict and mislead each song’s true intentions. Vocalist-guitarist Casimer Pascal demonstrates his contrariness in “Summer Is Almost Here” with the lyrics, “Summer is almost here / Where Mother Nature tries to make us / Strip right down to our underwear / … But we wouldn’t dare (no I wouldn’t dare) / And I don’t know what to do about your father / And I heard this heat won’t keep him ‘round much longer / But it’s too hot to care, oh yeah…”

The album forays into everything from teenage models to child-parent relationships, racism, adult geeks, and literature classes, even including a “Suite Cherry," three songs dedicated to 30-somethings everywhere, still bumbling about like teenagers. Lacing all this along is a sound comprised of old-school stuff like the Zombies and Bowie, twee from the ‘90s, Stereolab (“Cherry Needs a Name”), and new stuff such as Field Music and Kristoffer Ragnstam. Confusing formula, yes? But this is what makes Pas/Cal such a delight to listen to — it’s “feel-good’’ music that could turn introspective on a dime — right at the proverbial fork in the road.

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