The cover of Mysterious Power
It seems that the latest trend in alternative rock is this streak of country twang and Americana feel. And in no band is it more pronounced than in the music of Ezra Furman & the Harpoons. The four-piece band formed at Tufts University and just released their third album, Mysterious Power.
The first song I heard from Ezra Furman & the Harpoons was “I Killed Myself But I Didn’t Die.” Lead singer Ezra Furman’s voice is unlike anything I have ever heard before; it is incredibly raw and often cracks with emotion, which is a huge part of the band’s one-in-a-million sound. “I Killed Myself But I Didn’t Die” has a catchy chorus and lyrics that are meant to pull the listener in. As Ezra Furman sings “I killed myself but I didn’t die/ Now she’s my baby she’s the apple of my eye/ She only wants a sensitive guy/ And I’ve been in and out of my mind three times,” I can’t help thinking that the Harpoons might also have some punk influence in their music.
And despite the mix of country, Americana, and rock, Ezra Furman & the Harpoons uses elements of pop songwriting in their music as well. The songs are catchy, but not repetitive. In the case of songs like “I Killed Myself But I Didn’t Die” and “Bloodsucking W***e,” the band repeats a couple catchy lines at the beginning of each chorus, but varies it up from there. It is truly pop songwriting at its best. The songs are relatable, but also find a place for Americana influences, talking about nature and the beauty of the “Western expanse.”
All this is laid over piano, drums, and an acoustic guitar that often turns to picking instead of strumming to create that country feel. They are conventional instruments used to create unconventional sounds and that’s one of the things that make Ezra Furman & the Harpoons so diverse. There are songs like “Wild Rosemarie” on their latest album, Mysterious Power, that are melancholy country-pop songs and others like “Teenage Wasteland” that could pass as pure punk-rock. It is a mastery of genres that takes a ton of skill and creativity, and I’ve never heard a band pull it off better.
So, as if the mix of Americana, punk, rock, pop, and country isn’t enough to make you listen to Ezra Furman & the Harpoons, you can listen to their song “Hard Time in a Terrible Land” below:
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