Citing John & Yoko’s 1969 Wedding Album, Casual Strangers’ third disc pays tribute to both its principals’ recent marriage and the LP that inspired it, beginning with its carefully duplicated cover. Unlike its precursor, however, this Wedding Album contains actual music. Written and recorded at home – and tweaked by Frenchie Smith at the Bubble – Paul Waclawsky and Katey Gunn-Waclawsky utilize synths and guitars for a gentle soundtrack to their bliss. Digitized “Baby’s Happy,” robotic “Love You for Life,” and the sedately psychedelic “Eyes for You” flash a humor that keeps “aww” from becoming “eww.” Near-ambient melodies swell and recede over the pair’s electronics, and rhythm remains non-existent; anyone hoping to hear the controlled explosions of Paul’s other local band, the Boxing Lesson, will be disappointed. Self-indulgent but charmed, this is a true wedding album – available for those who want to share the couple’s joy and unnecessary for anyone else.

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This article appears in October 21 • 2016.

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Michael Toland started writing about music in 1988 on the Gulf Coast, moved to Austin in early 1991, and has inflicted bylines upon the corporeal and digital pages of Pop Culture Press, The Big Takeover, Blurt, Amplifier, Austin.citysearch, the Austin American Statesman, Goldmine, Sleazegrinder, Rock & Roll Globe, High Bias, FHT Music Notes, and, since 2011, The Austin Chronicle.