Preston Bryant says pop music is misunderstood.
"When you say 'pop,' people think of Britney Spears, and I like Britney Spears, but that's beside the point," he says. "The purest definition of 'pop' is something that is meant to be accessible and enjoyed."
Bryant, a psychology junior, who has been perfecting his pop craft alone for several years, is releasing his first album under the moniker Businessman's Lunch. He played nearly every instrument on his new album "Westerns!" such as guitars, synths, drums and various electronics.
Now finished with the album, Bryant has put together a five-piece live band. A release show for the album is scheduled on Nov. 29, where Bryant will bring his songs to the stage for the first time.
For Bryant, pop music is most enjoyable when it combines the catchy with the unfamiliar.
"I think it's really fun to take things that most people would find unlistenable and make them digestible," Bryant says.
Bryant's new album is influenced by artists who take this experimental approach to popular music. He says he admires musicians like David Bowie and Brian Eno for contributing to the worlds of both pop and avant-garde music.
"[Bowie] was somebody that was able to entertain the masses while still being artistic," he says. "The challenge of making music like that is very interesting to me."
The accessibility of his music partly stems from his lyrical style, which involves singing about a character who takes feelings to the extreme, Bryant says.
"If it can be funny and heartfelt, that will hopefully make the song universal," Bryant says.
Bryant says he avoids writing lyrics that are too obscure but says he enjoys creating songs that can be interpreted in a variety of ways.
"I like the idea that songs can mean different things to different people, and that's how I write," he says. "I want to create as many avenues of enjoyment as possible. People can have whatever relationship they want with my music."
In the end, Bryant says it's just pop music.
"You don't have to get too heady about it, unless you want to," he says.
Sense of Sound
Businessman's Lunch is an effortless combination of joyful noises and hummable melodies. Bryant's lyrics, sung in a deep Magnetic Fields baritone, convey narrators wrought with jealousy and self-consciousness. However, the catchy synth lines and stunning guitars shimmer with complete confidence. Propelling the songs are larger-than-life drums that crack atop the choruses like early Flaming Lips jams. "Westerns!" is a record both humble and bombastic, and it can grab attention at the first listen.
