Eyelids – Accidental Falls – Limited Edition, Colored Vinyl, Jealous Butcher Records, 2020
On The Accidental Falls Portland, Oregon’s Eyelids, one of rock’s best-kept secrets, step firmly out from the considerable shadow cast by the band members’ second-to-none pedigrees earned from time spent in Guided By Voices, The Decemberists, Stephen Malkmus and Elliott Smith. Featuring lyrics written by poet and frequent Tim Buckley collaborator Larry Beckett that span over four decades and produced by REM iconoclast Peter Buck, The Accidental Falls features a bountiful cacophony of gorgeously shimmering riffs and songs so delectably crafted that all who value the electric guitar as a source of joy should find themselves awash in goosebumps once under this record’s spell. A testament to rock’s remaining vitality as an art form, Eyelids’ fourth album finds the outfit as both stewards of a classic sound (Chiltonites and disciples of IRS Records-era REM will fall hard for this project) and accomplished artists propelling their craft to thrilling new heights. A record that practically drips with the abundant passion and well-honed skill of its creators; song after song, riff after riff, stanza after stanza, The Accidental Falls casts a hypnotic spell over the listener and triumphantly reminds us, hearts fully on sleeves, why we fell in love with rock n’ roll in the first place.
