Scarecrow II

Led by songwriter, singer, and multi-instrumentalist Thomas Rubenstein, the Telephone Numbers are a part of the Bay Area indie pop scene that carries forward the jangle and tuneful melancholy of the peak years of 80s and 90s college rock. While peers like the Umbrellas, Cindy, and Children Maybe Later mine the more punk-adjacent corners of independent music history for their inspiration, the Telephone Numbers are more inclined to mature refinement, and their second album Scarecrow II presents this refinement at its best. The influence of the Go-Betweens is everywhere on Scarecrow II, in particular in the aching melodies of "Ebb Tide" and the restrained pacing, soft organ, and violin accents of the doomed romance narrative song "Hemlock." Telephone Numbers have often had overlapping membership with fellow San Francisco indie pop gems the Reds, Pinks, and Purples, and there are a few songs where that overlap in style and lyrical perspective shines through. Album-opener "Goodbye Rock n Roll" shares both the bright, straightforward hookiness and a weariness with the state of independent rock music that makes up a large percentage of RP&P songs, and "This Job Is Killing Me" recalls the way earlier RP&P material flitted between ambient moods and jangly chord progressions. Scarecrow II isnt all moody and subdued, however. "Pulling Punchlines" is an upbeat romp with power pop accents, and the self-referencing "Telephone Numbers Theme" is lighthearted and fun without being too goofy. Scarecrow II represents some of the better songs made under the Telephone Numbers banner, covering a lot of emotional, musical, and stylistic ground without ever straying too far from the mournfully melodic beauty that acts as the albums through-line. ~ Fred Thomas