Cue

Wedding Song

When it comes to instrumental rock, time is the cornerstone of composition. Its system of sequential relations hinges upon suspension and relief dynamics. Local quartet Cue mastered the maxim with 2005’s Bring Back My Love, but Wedding Songs lacks its predecessor’s frailty and urgency. “Forests of Pencil Pierced Children” and “Capture the Flag” never quite peak or dismantle. “The Last Good Year of My Life” leans toward smooth jazz; “Wedding Song for Living Things and Dead Things” clashes continuously as brooding basslines juxtapose with jubilant violin strokes before eroding into a twinkling of xylophone and bursting back to life. The brief “(Every Wing Hits at Once),” meanwhile, barely has a chance to register. The album still has it moments. Closer “Fleur de Lis” is simply sublime, and “Can You See My Skeleton?” perfectly balances surf with the no-wave. Ultimately those transcendent instances are too few and far between.

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This article appears in July 13 • 2007.

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