Ever the Optimist, the name of the seventh album from Scottish indie-pop institution the Trashcan Sinatras, appears to be the kind of title that should be delivered with a wink or a smirk. That’s an interpretation that suits these days of endless doomscrolling, a vantage point that belongs to the resigned and paranoid days of the 21st century. But the Trashcan Sinatras belong to the waning years of the 20th century, and they don’t do irony, nor do they chase trends. Forty years after their formation, they remain resolutely dedicated to the basic elements that distinguished pop music in the wake of the Beatles: ringing guitars, sighing harmonies, clever turns of phrase that sharpen their melodic hooks. All of these traits are as evident on Ever the Optimist as they were on Cake, their 1990 debut, yet the quintet makes no effort to disguise the time that’s elapsed. The beats are a bit slower, the guitars aren’t as crisp, the execution has more finesse, and they pointedly don’t play with the hunger that courses through their 1993 masterwork, I’ve Seen Everything.
On Ever the Optimist, that’s all to the band’s benefit. The music is bright, relaxed, and natural, with the Trashcan Sinatras revving up the tempo just enough to give the album a bounce. It’s evident from the start, when the title track kicks off the album with such buoyancy that there’s no doubt that the band is indeed choosing to look on the bright side of life. That deliberate embrace of optimism carries a sense of poignancy due to the tragic death of guitarist and vocalist John Douglas from a sudden illness just days after the album’s release. But the Trashcan Sinatras also populate the album with songs about loss and absences, ending the on the meditative note of “Learning to Love Your Ghost.” Early in the album, lead singer Francis Reader even cops to being a “Bad Husband,” playing the cad against the sweet counterpoint of Camera Obscura’s Tracyanne Campbell.
No score yet, be the first to add.
Campbell isn’t the only guest here. Scritti Politti’s Green Gartside duets with Reader on “Hold on to Today,” a dreamy slow dance that remains anchored to earth by such sensibilities as “life is terrible and wonderful.” The presence of the additional voices enhance the sense of camaraderie on Ever the Optimist, how the Trashcan Sinatras are summoning their good spirits by relying on music that has never let them down.
That collective warmth is something of an illusion. At no point during the album’s recording did all five members occupy the same studio. Separated by the Atlantic Ocean, the rhythm section of John Douglas, bassist Davy Hughes, and drummer Stephen Douglas assembled the backing tracks, letting lead guitarist Paul Livingston and Reader finish the topline melodic elements. Stepping away from his regular gig in the Delgados, producer Paul Savage stitched the recordings together so no seams show. Indeed, the remarkable thing about Ever the Optimist is that it has no sense of distance separating either the musicians or their audience, a feeling they made real when they reunited for what turned out to be their last performance with Douglas, playing together in a room for a select number of friends and fans while shooting a recent music video: “[T]hose circumstances aren’t around too often,” Douglas told Spill Magazine. “So, there was a lot of treasuring every minute, looking at each other.” On Ever the Optimist, there’s an immediacy to the elegant melodies and unadorned emotions that makes the album feel quietly life-affirming.
