BLACK VINYL After landing in the Top 30 in their native Australia as well as charting across Europe with their second album, Day/Night (2021), Parcels remain deeply indebted to the sounds of the '70s on LOVED, an album guided by the theme of unity. What makes Parcels so irresistible here -- at least if one is open to some wholehearted brotherly love -- is that their particular touchstones seem to include funky disco in the celebratory tradition of Chic, certain civil rights-era classic soul, and the vestiges of harmony-driven West Coast hippie folk-rock, all tinged with modern indie and electro-pop. Not entirely party-hearty, a good half of the album succumbs to a yearning bittersweetness, although it's relentlessly affectionate throughout, and LOVED kicks off with a dance-funk jam, "Tobeloved." Songs like "Sorry" and "Summerinlove" that fall into the bittersweet category still take a rhythmic approach to melancholier sentiments like "I'm sorry that it hurts to be loved/I'm sorry that the world isn't easy" and "Try to find a feeling I can use/Try to let the season take me through." When not openly supportive, they at the very least keep the communication channels open. Elsewhere, breaking through any potential resistance to the earnestness and airtight grooves on board, are group harmonies that lift songs like the searching "Leaves" and reassuring "Ifyoucall" into the stratosphere. A track like the striding "Finallyover" celebrates getting unpleasantness out of the way, and the quasi-slow jam "Everybodyelse" actually finds comfort in comparing oneself to others ("Haven't you heard? Everything's absurd"). While not for cynics, LOVED is a late-summer delight that comes at audiences with open arms. Comfortable dancing shoes recommended for listening. Tobeloved 4:05Ifyoucall 4:01Safeandsound 4:36Sorry 3:17Yougotmefeeling 3:03Leaves 3:41Everybodyelse 3:38Summerinlove 4:31Leaveyourlove 3:51Thinkaboutit 2:51Finallyover 3:11Iwanttobeyourlightagain 5:02
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