Born Hot

On his sophomore full-length, indie pop troubadour Chris Farren places himself under the microscope, balancing earnest self-reflection with pop culture witticisms and some pleasantly catchy songwriting. The Florida native initially came up from the D.I.Y. underground in the late part of the 2010s, fronting the exuberant indie rock quartet Fake Problems. That band eventually dissolved in 2014, making way for his creative partnership with like-minded pop oddball Jeff Rosenstock as Antarctigo Vespucci, a similarly energetic project which Farren continued to maintain even as he started nurturing his solo career with 2016s Cant Die. 2019s Born Hot marks his debut for the Polyvinyl label and, hiding behind the Burt Reynolds-inspired faux-sex symbol imagery of its title and cover illustration, essentially delivers a deeper exploration of Farrens signature, nerdy, confessional pop style. Now based on the West Coast, Farren performed and recorded the entire album in his L.A. apartment, layering it with scads of clever hooks and occasionally lush instrumentation. Musically, he touches on a variety of different approaches, from punchy guitar-driven power pop (Bizzy) to bright, orchestrated indie pop (Does the Good Outweigh the Bad?), and more subdued electro-pop (Surrender). In terms of ideas, Farren is a fountain of melody and harmony, doling out nice little synth leads, dueling guitarmonies, and memorable riffs into increasingly concise arrangements. His quirky, slightly emo self-deprecating humor remains a major element of his approach, but on the ironically confident Born Hot, hes at his best during the albums more vulnerable moments, offering a glimpse of a maturing and deeply creative artist. ~ Timothy Monger