HighMay - Few Downsides to The Upside

Approving nods tend to seem more deserved  when given in the direction of solo singer/songwriters gone band, more so than in cases of the opposite career order; certainly not always - but in many instances.  HighMay frontman James Atto is one such case in point.  While the work accomplished on his band's debut release The Upside, likely wouldn't have turned out sounding any different if packaged under Atto's name alone, you still tend to like hearing a strong songwriter play well with others.  Atto's fingerprints on Upside may stand out a little clearer than his cohorts' do, but credit remains to the band's ability to wholly manage the careful ebb and flow it takes to sound like a collective with personnel who all have their hearts in it.

The Upside is a well wrought collection of neatly produced "hit potentials" with strong tendency to follow the alt-pop blueprint that makes them so: clever lyrical quips, mood inducing instrumentation, verse-chorus design - ultimately songs composed in a way that puts formula before content.  The upside, however (pun very deliberate and intended), is that even though the content of HighMay's compositions are sat back seat to the formulaic train they're delivered by, that content is still actually there, in lieu of just being compensated for.  The opener on the album, very cooly entitled "Collar", is perfect archetype for this. Its moody string arrangement establishes itself behind Atto's sneering sardonic recounting of crestfallen experiences, lines of lessons learned about assumption - the most clever of which is emphasized in the refrain: "I put you on a pedestal, but you put me on a stool...". The song would stand up proper even if stripped down to acoustic guitar and vocal alone, maybe piano or keys - no matter, it's strong with message in front of or behind form - and it's a song that immediately sets the tone for the aesthetics that HighMay makes point to attain.

"Stay 4 Hours", too, represents the sort of paradox notion of content belying delivery. It's not what the song says, it's how it's said. And while the line "I'd rather taste victory than defeat" seems a little... well obvious - the soulful, almost R&B lay of the vocals, and the accompaniment of guest singer Sara Celina, provide a very enticing call-and-answer male/female cantillate that bears repeating. There's something inviting and familiar about it, as with its follower "Belong".  "You rubbed the lamp and set me free, but did not get your wish," Atto sings haughtily, "I looked at you, just smiled and said, 'Ain't that 'bout a bitch?'" Having the wherewithal to put these two very strong tracks in succession is exactly the sort of thing that drives The Upside true marked center into the heart of all that has become the proper form of a commercially viable album.

HighMay's (left to right) James Atto, Stephan K and Julian Fraser.
Photo courtesy Crystal Vinson  

The only song thats penchant falls just  a little short of wholly satisfying (any fingers pointing to prosaic ignored), even aside from "Dust" being blatantly John Mayer-esque (though still standout in the collection), would be the late in queue number "The Line".  The chorus comes off a bit wedged in place, as one could easily argue the strength of the verses alone would have adequately - and maybe better - seen the song through to its end.  On the flip side, though, the chorus does succeed in providing uptune to a song that might have otherwise been perceived as jarringly melodramatic in comparison to its predecessors. 

Granted, most of The Upside's 12 tracks draw from the usual reserve of songs about a relationship, commonly a romantic one; songs about being in a relationship - sometimes a romantic one; and second person "you you" strains about dysfunctional relationships... or maybe just seen as "unique" in the eye of the beholder.  Sure, this is a well that's been tapped relentlessly for decades, but it still proves to be the tried and true musical experience an audience likes best, and what HighMay is clearly after here is putting its finger on the pulse of exactly that.  Few would argue they nail it, The Upside very successfully accomplishes what it hopes to - and that in itself can really be a tall order if you're some other band that lacks the ability to pull it off.  HighMay has the fortune of being headed by a fantastic songwriter, accompanied by solid musicians from top to bottom, and all wrapped in today's modern and beautiful production plastic.  They're a band that knows what makes hits by the standards it takes to make them.  The tools that hone HighMay's craft are used well in the group's hands, and what's more, they demonstrate a solid expertise in wielding them.  That said, it's by their own design that any and all success the band meets will be purely more intentional than incidental.

The Upside was released in January of this year, and can be sampled and purchased by clicking the album cover below.