New album Dormarion offers catchy lyrics to accompany a pleasant indie-pop musical style

Benjamin Lerner, the Seattle-based man who performs under the name Telekinesis, released his second full-length album Dormarion this past week. This album was a satisfying follow-up to his first release, self-titled Telekinesis!. As a debut album, Telekinesis! paved the way for a promising career for Lerner.
After being signed to Merge Records in 2009, Lerner teamed up with Death Cab for Cutie’s guitarist Chris Walla to produce Telekinesis!. Walla plays on most tracks, as well as assisting Lerner with mixing and sound engineering.
The two men produced the entire album by recording one song a day on an analog tape. This approach led to a unique sound for the album, with a smoothness of listening that has now become synonymous with Telekinesis’s work.
This new album, Dormarion, continues Lerner’s pleasant, easy-listening indie pop style. His soothing voice balances out the whimsical roughness of some of his songs. The first song of the album, titled “Power Lines,” opens with a mellow acoustic verse and then bursts into a peppy and explosive chorus, immediately bringing the listener into the album.
The song “Wires” also follows this classic construction, but is very effective in hooking the reader into the simple, fun and danceable pop.
Dormarion explores synth-pop in addition to the indie rock in which Lerner has already proven his proficiency. These dabblings in the electronic genre were a pleasant surprise in the album and although they differed from his standard style, they provided a wider range of listening in the album and effectively differentiate Lerner’s works from the plethora of indie pop currently being produced.
This innovation, seen most prominently in the songs “Ghosts and Creatures” as well as “Ever True,” allows listeners to slow down in the calmer, psychedelic electronic sections as well as the energetic synth bursts that inspire head nodding and foot tapping.
The pep present in Dormarion is partially the work of Spoon’s Jim Eno, who played the same role for Dormarion as Chris Walla played for Telekinesis!. This influence shows through the explosive choruses and catchy lines that are present in Spoon classics such as “Don’t You Evah” and “The Underdog.” Dormarion also harks to indie synth and rock group Chromeo, a two-man team that consistently produces highly enjoyable and danceable beats.
The album overall is a cohesive unit of carefree listening. At only 35 minutes, the album is slightly longer than the last production and has a wider range of styles.
From start to finish, the album brings a smile to the face of any listener needing a pick-me-up.
As we head into the hectic month of April, promising plenty of papers and tests to study for, consider Dormarion if you are in need of a little jolt of study-music energy.
Telekinesis is kicking off a small tour beginning this April with Deep Sea Diver.
This tour unfortunately does not boast any Seattle dates, but it may be worth the trip down to Portland on Sunday, April 21 for the opportunity to enjoy Lerner’s happy energy. It is likely that Seattle dates will be announced in the future, as Lerner is Seattle-based.
A very strong second album, Dormarion makes for wonderful performances as well as paves the way for more good albums to come. Dormarion’s dabbling in different styles suggests that further productions from Lerner will continue to be innovative.
His lyrics and subject matter will become more investigative and offer the listener interesting subject matter to go along with the pleasantries of pop.
Dormarion is available for download at the iTunes store as well as for free streaming on NPR Music’s “First Listen” program. Keep your eyes open for more shows from this up-and-coming artist, and don’t miss the opportunity to attend. Let Dormarion carry you through the remainder of the semester.

PHOTO COURTESY / SPIN.COM