Foster the People – Supermodel

We all know the script: young act hits it big with debut single that shoots them right into the big time, and then they release a follow-up that’s either just more of the same (see Strokes, The) or wildly too ambitious (see MGMT). How does one find a middle way? Los Angeles’ Foster the People had that hit in “Pumped Up Kicks” and debut Torches (QRO review), but follow-up Supermodel falls into neither of those traps. Or maybe both.

Reportedly a ‘concept album’ about dissatisfaction with modern popular culture, that concept is mostly just found in singer Mark Foster’s lyrics, but Supermodel does take the opportunity to stretch wide & tall.  This is clearly at its best in the first three tracks, “Are You Want You Want To Be”, “Ask Yourself”, and “Coming of Age”.  “Are You” sees some really neat afro-beat to FTP (without being wanna-be afro-beat like Vampire Weekend…), “Yourself” is wistful Foster that works, and “Coming of Age” has great tropical indie-catch.  Just based on that start, one would say that Foster the People has squared the sophomore circle.

However, the rest of Supermodel doesn’t match that high.  The group isn’t skilled enough to fully pull off the neo-tropical “Nevermind” or soul-inflected “Pseudologia Fantastica” right afterwards.  Meanwhile, the full-on disco-dance of “The Angelic Welcome of Mr. Jones” isn’t revelatory, and neither are the stripped “Goats In Trees” or “Fire Escape”.  None of the pieces are out-and-out bad; they just don’t stand out the way the start of the record did.

Torches had one mega hit that put Foster the People on the map.  Supermodel has three strong songs that show that they’re here to stay, and that’s growth, even if not perfect growth.