Stream: Magic Bronson, ‘Knock It Off’

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Magic Bronson
Magic Bronson

L.A. duo Magic Bronson are finishing up a new EP set for a fall release on Handwritten Records, and if it’s anything like their 2016 (self-titled) EP or their brilliant but overlooked 2014 full-length “Wildlife,” it’ll be a wild ride. In fact, it’s never not a wild ride with vocalist Michael Nicastro and bassist Matthew Lieberman: Their genre-hopping capers are like taking a river cruise … on a speedboat, with a caffeinated driver (Lieberman) and a tipsy tour guide (Nicastro). Musically, they often bite off more than they can chew, but that’s part of the spectacle. Restraint is somebody else’s game.

Their new single “Knock It Off” lacks nothing for the bizarre: The bass prods and synths tickle while Nicastro trots through two sing-songy verses full of his typically clever lyrics (is there such a thing as “glib-hop?”). Then the song brakes, turns left and dives into party-anthem rock chorus. It works, and it doesn’t.

Says the duo: “The lyrics to ‘Knock It Off’ are about a wild psychedelic trip that’s taking place at a bar in the East Side of Los Angeles. The lyrics were originally inspired by the cover art of Father John Misty’s debut album ‘Fear Fun’ [which] we tried to paint a picture of [while] under the influence at a bar or club. And having all these strange characters coming up to you and trying to either be your best friend or hitting on your girlfriend and feeling a bit tripped out about the whole situation. You keep telling yourself none of it is real so you might as well just let go and have fun with the situation.” OK, then.

The song is their first new music since the 2017’s “Nervous.”

||| Stream: “Knock It Off”

||| Live: Magic Bronson plays the Buzz Bands LA Stage, in the Champagne Room at Taix, at Echo Park Rising on Saturday, Aug. 18.