With a cast that includes Man Man's Honus Honus, the Islands' Nick Thorburn, Modest Mouse's Joe Plummer, and—as a touring member—actor Michael Cera, Mister Heavenly is easily one of the more bizarre supergroups in pop music's history. Honus and Thorburn are the two larger-than-life musical personalities that dominate this outfit, instantly flying their respective freak flags and taking over songs like "Pineapple Girl" with ferocious hooks and eccentric lyricism. The two are an irresistibly odd pairing. Take the gravely Honus Honus-sung verse in "Pineapple Girl" that begins, "I don't desire to be a clueless creature / Just waltzing through the woods, waiting to get eaten." Two Honus lines later comes Thorburn's verse: "I am besieged by the vagaries of power / I'm all alone and lonely in this tower / I'm not that evil but there are some people / I might have to harm them, don't mean to alarm you." It's almost too much: the absurd metaphors, the wordy banter, the violence. But because the melodies and musicianship are so sharp and dynamic, it works. And it's damn good.
Mister Heavenly's debut LP Out of Love drops August 16th via Sub Pop.
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