“What I took from the drawer/doesn’t make me miss you any less,” sings Eulogies’ Peter Walker on “One Man” taken his band’s self-titled debut. A natural storyteller with an eye for the heartbreaking details, Walker sings about all the things that aren’t there anymore and what it means now that they’re gone. Backed by bassist Tim Hutton and drummer Chris Reynolds, this L.A threesome has an almost preternatural gift for making the dark stuff so catchy: there’s fuzzed-out pop (“Suicide”), jangly choruses (“Under The Knife”) and straight up rock and roll (“Useless Amends”). Walker’s lyrics are often brooding character studies of folks who can’t seem to get it right, but what makes Walker such a unique writer is that he never castigates his characters for their errors, but rather, keeps them company by offering a massive capacity of understanding. For example, the sparse “Little Davie” tells the tale of a boy who was a liar and a thief, and Walker does admit he “lied to get a job” but then theorizes “who doesn’t?” Elsewhere, there’s the sneaky and rhythmic new wave noir of “Big Eyes” and the album closer “Blizzard Ape” is a devastating number about being out of one’s element. An arresting album of poetic beauty and tons of heart.
--Alex Green
