Accusations of plagiarism will always be a problem facing new acts with their debut. Currently, any band with the desire to insert some innocent electronics behind their vocals is in danger of being described as another Animal Collective copycat. Tallest Trees are one such band. Yes, they use samples, they effect their voices, and they even incorporate the odd tribal rhythm. But while Animal Collective are certainly an influence (via their avant-folk Feels era), Tallest Trees can’t be defined as fraudsters. They’ve shaped their own sounds: emotively sung lyrics, distant, lo-fi electronics, and a host of indiscernible but beguiling noises.
Beginning with a reboot into a gravelly synth, singers Thomas “Trees” Samuel and Dabney “Voice” Morris wail like it’s their last breath on “Human Voice (Echo 1),” sung with stargazing passion and genuine integrity. The following track, “Alouette!”, is equally promising, with chirpy toy instruments floating over French vocal samples, like Brigitte Bardot at a carnival. So far the band suggests promising originality and a balance between weighty and upbeat content. Not bad for two songs.
Further on, “Our Hands” boasts deep, thumping beats that frame a poignant chorus of voices. “Stars” sounds exactly like its title, with whimsical strumming and campfire-folk vocal exchanges. This said, Tallest Trees do begin to lose their claim on you as the minutes tick by, resorting to a combination of abstract drones, as on the amorphous “Upstream,” or languid vocal melodies without the power to carry something memorable with it. This denies the unquestionable charm of rhythmic closer “We Were Just An Echo (Echo 2),” another stargazer in which indeterminate, squelching sounds wade out of the speakers.
As much as some would like them to, Tallest Trees don’t fail, because they aren’t direct plagiarists. In fact, they show real promise, manipulating sound into interesting templates that at times offer arresting moments of beauty. But even though they aren’t copycats, when working in similar realms as bands that are talked about around the world, they need something that will make them seem that little bit fresher. They’re not quite at the stage where they can stand proud in a mire of like-minded bands, but they’re damn close.
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