Casual Technicians - Casual Technicians (2024) Hi-Res

Where to start with explaining a record as diverse and ambitious as Casual Technicians’ self-titled debut LP? Perhaps with the creators Tyler Keene (And And And, Log Across the Washer), Boone Howard (The We Shared Milk and the Boone Howard band), and Nathan Baumgartner (And And And)? Three songwriters, three different voices, one piece of the puzzle found. Second piece, they wrote and recorded the 19 songs at Howard’s Chittenango, NY farm, “surrounded by turkeys and sheep and beautiful upstate scenery.” Perhaps this explains the dazzling display of creativity? I could go on analyzing this record like this, but we’re not Pitchfork, and honestly I lack the words and understanding of what the hell is going on, and what makes this record so special. Smile-era Beach Boys and the early Elephant 6.

“Casual Technicians is a band consisting of three geographically separated songwriters (Tyler Keene, Boone Howard, and Nathan Baumgartner). All three have deep roots in the Portland, Oregon music scene. Keene and Baumgartner were founding members of And And And, sharing songwriting duties until Keene’s departure to focus on his prolific Log Across the Washer project. Howard led The We Shared Milk and the Boone Howard band. Baumgartner now lives on the Oregon coast and Keene lives in Newark, New Jersey.

Having three accomplished songwriters attempting to write music together sounds like a recipe for disaster and clashing egos, but the resulting tunes were created with very little conflict and are a cohesive if idiosyncratic collection of songs. Pop earworms and lush harmonies abound. There are elements of Steely Dan, Smile-era Beach Boys, Angelo Badalamenti/David Lynch atmosphere, and splashes of unabashed emo.

The new single is a perfect blend of lo-fi rock with slowcore and folk influences. The songwriting is excellent and the melody, though simple, is incredibly catchy. I find the single reminiscent of the old country legends like Hank Williams.