When Thao Nguyen’s parents split up, she picked up a guitar
to deal with the frustration and turbulence. It came in handy when she
had to do a book report. “One of the first songs I ever wrote was for
an English project in eighth grade for Lord of the Flies. It was
very intense, in a minor key—maybe the best thing I’ve ever
written.” This is unlikely, since her new album contains some of the
most uplifting and enjoyable folk-pop this side of Island of the
Blue Dolphins. But if the joyous energy contained on We Brave
Bee Stings and All is uncomplicated, its sentiments and
inspirations are not.
“We splash our eyes full of chemicals just so there’s none left for
little girls,” Nguyen sings in “Swimming Pools,” a tribute to
sacrifices made by older generations. After her parents’ split, she
watched her single mother run a drycleaner and laundromat, a thankless
job that required long hours and no days off. “I bend back with an eye
full of mud and I take it on the chin, then I patch you up,” she sings
in “Feet Asleep,” a ode to her mother’s hard work, in which she assumes
the voice of her mother and complains in a way that her mother never
would. However, the song’s ragtime groove virtually bursts with love
and gratitude. She’s mastered the time-tested songwriting trope of
pairing a melancholy lyric with an upbeat tune, but it’s rarely a
deliberate trick.
“It’s conscious as far as both those elements are what I really
enjoy in music as a listener,” she explains. “It’s more fun as a writer
and a performer to do upbeat music. But when I write, there’s probably
something bad going on, something not
as cheerful.”
While the songs may be personal, her backing band, the Get Down Stay
Down, radiantly augments them. “Willis [Thompson] and I went to school
together at William and Mary. For a while it was just us two playing
around.” Eventually the other members came on board, and their
contributions to Bee Stings move effortlessly from soul to folk
to jazzy shuffle. The band is wrapping up a long tour with
pointy-headed labelmates Xiu Xiu, whose odd, confrontational music
seems a strange pairing with Nguyen’s laidback, welcoming charm. “It’s
a big contrast. We’ve certainly had Xiu Xiu fans who want us off the
stage immediately. But there are people who are showing up to see us,
which is awesome. We’re glad to have this tour.”
And the road continues, with dates stretching throughout the rest of
the year, including a European tour, an upcoming appearance at the
Sasquatch Festival, and an opening slot on Rilo Kiley’s East Coast tour
as well. For Nguyen’s second Portland appearance in as many months,
however, things will be relatively stripped down, returning to the
original duo of Nguyen and Thompson. “It’s cool, it gives us a little
more room for each of us to be busier on our instruments. And you’ll
see how it was in college.”