Tennis, the Denver husband-and-wife duo that created a charming indie-pop debut album out of several months of sailing, are back on land and grounded in rock ‘n’ roll for their sophomore effort.
Young & Old has plenty of the sweetness that worked for Tennis the first time around. Alaina Moore’s voice is still throaty and pretty, and Patrick Riley is still picking out beach-y riffs on the guitar. What makes this album different is a heavier emphasis on the drums and a sharper rock edge, largely thanks to Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney, who produced the record. His influence is most noticeable on the beat-driven “My Better Self” and “High Road,” but it all still has that happy, fuzzy pop sound Tennis does so well.
The whole album goes along those lines. It still sounds like Tennis, but Riley and Moore were clearly trying to move in a new direction and get a little rougher. It’s somewhere between changing and staying them same, and that’s perfectly fine.
You can stream Young and Old over at Pitchfork.
![Irish soda bread is a quick bread, which means it doesn’t require any yeast or kneading to rise. Instead, it relies on baking soda and buttermilk, which interact for leavening. When the ingredients are combined, the leavening process starts immediately, so the dough should be mixed quickly — hence the moniker “quick bread.” It shouldn’t […]](https://www.coloradodaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SJM-TASTEFOOD-0319-1.jpg?w=495 "Irish soda bread is a quick bread, which means it doesn’t require any yeast or kneading to rise. Instead, it relies on baking soda and buttermilk, which interact for leavening. When the ingredients are combined, the leavening process starts immediately, so the dough should be mixed quickly — hence the moniker “quick bread.” It shouldn’t […]")