Reading Rainbow:
Prism Eyes

Paste Rating

7.1

respectable

User Rating

(2 votes)

8.0

Your Rating

0.0

Philadelphia’s Reading Rainbow is fun. The duo fully embraces the daintyhood perfected by twee pioneers with a bedroom-recording twist. And with just two members, the sound gets impressively big.

The fuzz-pop married couple, the surname-less Rob and Sarah, stir up dance-worthy jams on Prism without really breaking new ground. Reading Rainbow has put a healthy portion of Vaselines’ catalog, a dash of Tallulah Gosh and a sprig of Athens, Ga.-style pop in a slow cooker for two days. It smells delicious—and it definitely is—but it’s something you’ve certainly munched on before.

But Prism Eyes is still worth a listen or eight. The full-length starts out strong with “Wasting Time,” a jam centered around a somewhat futile, somewhat desperate crush. There’s nothing like a jaunty number complete with both adorable anguish and shakers. “Let’s Dream Tonight” elegantly fuses cutesy vocal-work with glimmering shoegaze guitar. It takes its time building—first with blended singing and minimal guitar, then hints of organ before the riffs and kick drum start.

A few tracks like “Animals Take Control of Me,” slow things down, but Prism Eyes is for the most part an Oxford-shoed toe tapper. Reading Rainbow will show you a good time; they just haven’t quite found their unique sound to leave a lasting impression.

You can pick up the album on Hozac Records here when it drops on vinyl Nov. 23.

Check out the video from their Shaking Through recording session below:

Shaking Through: Reading Rainbow from Weathervane Music on Vimeo.