Admit it, you skipped Blake Sennett's songs on Rilo Kiley's The Execution of All Things! It's often distracting to hear different vocalists for different tracks. All the songs he chose to sing, with his breathy voice that blended in with the instrumentation, had some downbeat melody and melancholy lyrics. It was different from the lively pop songs touched with country that Jenny Lewis sang. I will openly admit that I overlooked Sennett's tracks only because I appreciate the tracks for their musicality and variation now. On the Elected's Me First Sennett's voice and songwriting can be heard throughout the album.
An obvious comparison is Rilo Kiley, after all half of the band is in the Elected. Blake Sennett along with drummer Jason Boesel hooked up with Daniel Brummel from LA band Ozma and friend Mike Bloom to form the Elected. The well-crafted melodies and Blake Sennett's tenor are reminiscent of Elliott Smith, but with a country twang. In fact, the first person they thank is Smith for his "limitless kindness and beauty [that] will never be forgotten." Though the band originates from Los Angeles and Sub Pop is established in Seattle, they have an Omaha state of mind in which they round up several of their friends and feature them on the album. People from the Saddle Creek family who make appearances on Me First are Mike Mogis, Orenda Fink, Jenny Lewis, Tiffany Kowalski, and Pierre de Reeder.
Strange backbeats and unearthly sound effects deceive the listener into thinking this is some odd response to Jenny Lewis's work with the Postal Service. "7 September 2003" fades into a country pop song with cascading lap steel notes, light drumming, and delicate acoustic guitar strumming. It's a slow-moving track where Sennett's voice blends in with the fusion of instruments. "Greetings in Braille" and "My Baby's a Dick" follow Sennett's pattern of melancholy lyrics and bittersweet melodies. Sennett's voice is reserved in the beginning of these songs, but he builds up his passion in the middle of the song only to back down a couple of seconds later.
The Elected strays away from their country infatuation to focus on their pop side in "A Time for Emily"; a nice trumpet solo, dulcet keys, and pretty vocal harmonies formulate one of the highlights of the album. "Don't Blow It" is similar to a lullaby with its gentle and soothing notes, but the lyrics yield a dark reminder. Orenda Fink of Azure Ray accompanies Sennett to produce a beautiful vocal duet. "British Columbia" is another highlight of Me First and it is also the most stripped down track on the record. It is a short acoustic song with charming guitar riffs and an effortless melody.
The Elected is an outlet for Blake Sennett's creativity which explains the variety of songs; he is the sole songwriter with the exception of the song "Waves" which he co-wrote with Brian Klugman. At times, it's a little too country for my taste, but it's a pleasant album nonetheless.
