There's a series of fairly self-explanatory go-to words and images conjured by Real Estate and routinely used to describe their effortlessly laid-back sound. For that reason, I shall attempt to avoid using them.
Following up their sunkissed self-titled debut, Real Estate’s Days continues in the same leisurely fashion, sophomore slumping its way through a dreamy chillwave landscape of sun, sand and... goddamnit.
Rather than demanding attention, the New Jersey outfit’s oeuvre tends to meander in the background: taking the stage in a similarly unassuming fashion, Martin Courtney & co open with Suburban Dogs, and so begins the Scala’s journey into the beach(y) abyss. The first of many detours arrives in the form of Green Aisles, as Courtney reminisces of “all those wasted miles", of "all those aimless drives”. The song’s cyclical melody winds and circles it’s way unhurriedly through a scenery of nostalgia, assuring its passenger: “And if you just sit tight / I'll be there soon”.
The live setting allows Alex Bleeker’s bass more prominence in the mix than on the comparatively lo-fi record, especially on tracks like Wonder Years (on which Bleeker also assumes vocal duties), although an overwhelming (or arguably underwhelming) meekness to the performance remains. Interaction with the crowd is understandably limited, and even on standout tracks such as Municipality and Out of Tune you'd be hard pressed to find anyone in the sea of faces recounting these wafts of lyric word-for-word.
The phrase “turning it up to eleven” should never be employed sincerely by a music journalist nor anyone with even an ounce of self-respect. Sadly however, I am neither, so let’s just say when Real Estate unveil All The Same, it was as close as they come to turning it up a notch, or indeed to eleven. Admittedly there's no danger of this registering on the Richter scale but, compared with the evening's previously somniferous sounds, the song’s punchy beat – complemented by Matt Mondanile’s perky guitar lines – felt like a far from unwelcome shot of adrenaline. The only other occasion in which Real Estate come close to disrupting the sleepy status quo is during a crowd-rousing(ish) rendition of It’s Real, with its catchy oohs, ahs, and uhms of the chorus, making it the band’s sole contender for a singalong anthem.
If you weren’t a fan of 'chillwave' before you entered, it’s hard to see this evening’s easygoing experience compelling you to rush out to buy the record. However for the already-attentive, tonight’s show epitomises Real Estate’s unpretentious and carefree attitude, displaying the band’s magnificent ability to sketch sonorous moods, the whole amassing to more than the sum of its parts.
