Released, and still available, for free on their Bandcamp page, King Buffalo‘s Live at Burning Manis a great capture of them doing what they do best – melting minds and faces, and what better place to do it than the Burning Man Festival during their first trip there?
Starting with a scorching version of “Silverfish,” the trio immediately hook the crowd – many of whom might not have known who they were. It was the first time they’d played the festival, after all. The guitar solo on “Grifter” sounds like a test car racing across a salt flat. People are already shouting, “Love you guys!” by the third song (“Shadows”).
“Longing to Be the Mountain” is their ten-minute-plus psychedelic take on a classic Zen story. “Repeater” is probably on rotation in a Zen retreat on a mountaintop somewhere, as it seems to make you levitate. “Orion,” one of their best-known tracks, absolutely rips here. You can tell that King Buffalo and the Burning Man crowd were feeling it by this point, and everyone knew they were experiencing something special.
“Red Star 1 & 2” is a massive double dose of mind-altering sounds (nearly fifteen minutes in length). “Loam” is trippy and heavy at the same time. The set ends with the epic “Cerberus,” sending the Burning Man crowd back into the desert with visions of things on the horizon they hadn’t noticed before the show began.
King Buffalo are, despite their frequent touring, still a bit of a secret. This live album gives us all another reason to learn their secrets, the number of which seem to increase with each listen and performance.
Imagine this: It’s barely post-pandemic. Your brain is still foggy. You’re not sure whom to hug or trust. You’re sick of Netflix. You’re sick of your house. You’re sick of being sick. You need something, anything, to shake you out of it.
Then along comes Welfare Jazz by Swedish post-punk rockers / goofballs Viagra Boys to slap you across the back of the head and remind you to get back to partying and laughing.
I mean, don’t we all know somebody like the lead character in the opening track, “Ain’t Nice”? Lead singer Sebastian Murphy warns a potential lover about his bad temper (“Trust me, honey, you don’t want me. I’ll start screamin’ if you look at me funny.”) and habits (“I’ll borrow your stuff and never put it back. I’m kinda hungry, could you give me a snack?”). There’s some much good stuff here that it’s difficult to tell who shines the most. Is it Henrik Höckert‘s bass? Elias Jungqvist‘s quirky synth bleeps? Oscar Carls‘ saxophone honks?
“Toad” is a story of a man who can’t settle down with someone who’s perfect for him. “I don’t need no woman tellin’ me when to go to bed and to brush my teeth,” Murphy sings as the rest of the band creates some kind of wild blues chaos behind him that swirls around like a menacing pack of hyenas. On “Into the Sun,” Murphy laments his actions and tries to repair the damage he’s done, but it’s too late. Benjamin Vallé‘s guitar notes are simple and sorrowful. It’s a blues tune hidden in a post-rock cut.
The bouncing synth-bass of “Creatures” is outstanding, and Murphy’s lyrics are a shout-out to those us not controlling the majority of the world’s wealth. “Shooter” is a wild psychedelic jazz instrumental and Tor Sjödén‘s drums on it are as tight as stuff heard on early Devo records. “Secret Canine Agent” is a song about, well, a spy dog.
“Jesus Christ, I feel alive! Just last week I thought that I was gonna die!” Murphy sings on “I Feel Alive,” summing up pretty much everyone’s post-pandemic attitude. The band’s slow juke-joint blues stomp of the song (and Murphy’s vocal delivery), however, reveals our true feelings: exhaustion, confusion, and indecision.
“Girls & Boys” has Murphy (and the rest of the band) in a panic as he tries to figure out what’s going to bring him happiness in a post-pandemic world? Girls? “They always try to tie me down.” Boys? “They stay out all night, don’t go home.” Drugs? “They make me feel I’m all alone.” Love? “Somethin’ that I know nothin’ about.” Shrimp? “Bu-bu-bu-blah-blah-blah-blah.” Dogs? “The only real friends that I got.” So, it’s either dogs or “One day I’m gonna burn it down.”
The album ends with two love songs: “To the Country” and “In Spite of Ourselves.” The first reflects a common desire during the pandemic: Let’s get out of the city and away from everyone where “it would all work out” and “it would be easier.” Or so we think. The instrumentation on it reminds us that you can’t run away from yourself. The second song, featuring Amy Taylor of Amyl and The Sniffers on guest vocals, is about a dysfunctional couple who realize they’re perfect for each other.
Welfare Jazz and all of Viagra Boys’ discography, really, is more clever than you realize at first blush. They write songs that poke fun at toxic masculinity, rich elitists, annoying party girls, drug addicts, and sex freaks, but also make them relatable. You know at least one person described on any given album by them, and Welfare Jazz is full of such characters. It’s like listening to conversations in an all-night diner at 3am, where they’re serving a fried shrimp special, and the diner is in the same block as a bodega, a strip club, and a Radio Shack that is somehow still in business.
The last time I saw Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs in Chicago, it was their first time there, let alone their first U.S. tour. It was at Chicago’s Sleeping Village, and there were maybe eighty people there. They flattened that place.
Now they were playing Chicago’s Lincoln Hall and the size of their audience had tripled. There were a small number of us who’d been at the Sleeping Village show, and it seemed only a couple dozen more who knew much about them. I envied their innocence. They had no idea what was about to unleashed on them.
First up, however, were Chicago’s own Edging – a wild post-punk band that my friend described as “They look like a bunch of people who all answered the same ‘looking for a roommate’ ad and then decided to start a band.” It’s accurate, and it somehow works. We only got to see the last three songs of their set, but it was wild and fun, and their saxophone player (around whom the band seems to rotate) plays a crazy horn.
The porcine quintet were next and they started out with a psychedelic version of “GNT” that grew into a menacing beast. They barely let up for a moment, with heavy-hitters like “Rubbernecker” and “Big Rig” flooring those people who didn’t know what to expect.
Some mosh pits started a couple times, but they were short-lived and not well attended. I think this is because people were too amazed at the sheer amount of weight they were dropping on the place to even think of moshing. I, too, noticed how much heavier they were from the first time I’d seen them. Songs like “Mr. Medicine” and “Terror’s Pillow” practically laid on you like a weighted blanket…thrown on you from a fourth-floor balcony.
“Sludgy” was a word I heard multiple times as my friend and I walked out of the venue. People who hadn’t experienced a live Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs show were marveling at the thick, almost viscous sound they’d been pummeled with for a little over an hour (and no encore, as the band said they decided at the start that “Encores are for bullshitters.”)
Don’t miss them. They’re touring the U.S. a lot through the spring. You need this fae-melting stuff in your life to sandblast you out of your doldrums.
Blushing — the Austin, TX-based dream pop band consisting of the double husband and wife pairs of Christina and Noe Carmona and Michelle and Jacob Soto — announce their new album Sugarcoat, out May 3rd via Kanine, and a North American tour. In conjunction, they present an infectious lead single/video, “Tamagotchi.” On Sugarcoat, Blushing’s dynamism is on full display, flitting effortlessly from spacey psychedelia to twee pop jangle with finesse and panache. Having enlisted Elliot Frazier (Ringo Deathstarr) and Mark Gardener (Ride) for engineering, mixing, and mastering duties, Sugarcoat is a dense, reverb-laden exploration of alt-rock’s 40 year history that conjures up concord from chaos.
Blushing as a band would not exist if not for a dive bar in Austin. Coincidentally, both couples met each other there on different nights. Eventually, the band began in 2015. Michelle had been casually writing songs and had a few rough melodies forged over her rudimentary guitar skills. Soon after reaching out to and jamming with Christina, a classically trained vocalist, they had a batch of ideas and regular practice. While trying to fill out the rest of the band, they were unable to ignore the fact that their husbands happened to be a guitar player (Noe) and a drummer (Jacob). By 2018, Blushing had released two EPs, 2017’s self-released “Tether” and 2018’s “Weak” (Austin Town Hall Records), and were playing shows in Austin fairly regularly. Following a chance encounter with Elliott Frazier (Ringo Deathstarr), who was a fan of Blushing’s prior work, he invited the group to his recording studio, which led to rough demos of what would ultimately be tracks for Blushing’s first full length, self-titled record. Blushing would work with Frazier again on 2022’s Possessions, which channels the dreamlike qualities of 4AD’s most ethereal bands paired with the guitar-forward approach of early 90s American indie rock.
Immediately after the band wrapped the recording sessions for Possessions, they began writing songs that would become Sugarcoat. Noe or Christina would upload a new song idea to a Google Drive almost daily, and within the hour Michelle would have melody and lyrics fully formed. They didn’t want to create an album where each song was made to fit into the same mold. Instead, they decided to run with each idea no matter which direction it was facing, resulting in an album that is somewhat of a sampler of the group’s collective influences. While there are certainly tracks immediately recognizable as “Blushing” songs, this album is where the band get to explore their love for expanding genres, from post-punk, psych-gaze, grunge-pop, indie-pop, slowcore, and beyond. Lyrically the album asks many questions, reaching out for someone to provide answers or for the answers to come from within. There is a lot of uncertainty in the world as well as personally. Getting older, questioning past decisions, and the constant unknown of the future.
Bursting with playfulness, today’s first taste “Tamagotchi” crunches and wails through an energetic, anthemic chorus harkening back to the most feverish nineties alt-rock style. It tells a tale of indecision of the heart and the desire to be a playable character in the game of love and have the big decisions made for you. Would you still feel heartache if someone else was pushing the buttons? The accompanying video, directed by and featuring the band, is vibrant and charming.
Between their recent Japan tour with Softcult, extensive stateside touring, multiple appearances on live-session staples like LEVITATION, SXSW showcases, and sharing stages with Snail Mail, Blonde Redhead, Beabadoobee and countless others, it’s clear that Blushing’s mastery of their craft is hardly mysterious. On their newly-announced North American tour, they’ll support Slater and Airiel, along with headline dates in Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and more. Tickets are on sale now and a full list can be found below.
Blushing Tour Dates Fri. March 15 – Austin, TX @ Hotel Vegas (SXSW official showcase) Thu. May 2 – Austin, TX @ Hotel Vegas (album release show) Wed. May 15 – San Antonio, TX @ Vibes Underground * Thu. May 16 – Dallas, TX @ Club Dada * Sat. May 18 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall * Sun. May 19 – McAllen, TX @ The Gremlin * Fri. June 14 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Resonant Head Sat. June 15 – Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge Sun. June 16 – Nashville, TN @ 5 spot Tue. June 18 – Washington, DC @ Pie Shop % Wed. June 19 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s % Thu. June 20 – Brooklyn, NY @ Baby’s All Right % Fri. June 21 – Boston, MA @ Deep Cuts % Sat. June 22 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground % Sun. June 23 – Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz % Mon. June 24 – Toronto, ON @ The Garrison % Wed. June 26 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr Smalls Funhouse % Thu. June 27 – Detroit, MI @ Small’s % Fri. June 28 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Sat. June 29 – Chicago, IL @ Schubas Mon. July 1 – Denver, CO @ Skylark Lounge Wed. July 3 – Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey Thu. July 4 – Portland, OR @ The Six Fri. July 5 – San Francisco, CA @ Kilowatt Sat. July 6 – Los Angeles, CA @ Moroccan Lounge Sun. July 7 – Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge Mon. July 8 – El Paso, TX @ Rosewood
Today, the long-running New York band A Place To Bury Strangers announce the single/video, “Change Your God,” from their new 7-inch series, The Sevens, via Dedstrange. “Change Your God” appears alongside “It Is Time” in the first installment of the series, out digitally today and physically this Friday, February 23rd. The Sevens are four 7-inch vinyl records on white vinyl being released each month from now through April. They unveil a treasure trove of previously unreleased tracks from A Place To Bury Strangers’ critically acclaimed sixth album, See Through You. Renowned for their visceral sonic assault and immersive live performances, A Place To Bury Strangers has cemented the end-all-be-all space for over-the-top post-punk/shoegaze destruction. With this special vinyl collection, the band invites listeners to delve deeper into their sonic universe, exploring uncharted territories and hidden gems.
“When looking back at the recordings that were done around the time of See Through You, there were a bunch of great tracks that just captured life back then and really had something incredible going on,” says frontman Oliver Ackerman. “Even though they are a bit raw and a bit personal, I thought it would be a mistake if they didn’t come out. I thought it would be best to go back to my roots and put out a series of 7-inches the way A Place To Bury Strangers started. That strange weird format where the tracks each speak for themselves; no album context to muddy the water. These tracks are such a contrast to the way I am feeling now and the current songs we’ve been working on so slip back into this moment in time.”
Fans all over the globe know: Oliver Ackermann always brings surprises. The singer and guitarist of New York City’s A Place To Bury Strangers has been delighting and astonishing his audience for close to two decades, combining post-punk, noise-rock, shoegaze, psychedelia, and avant-garde music in startling and unexpected ways. As the founder of Death By Audio, creator of signal-scrambling stomp boxes and visionary instrument effects, he’s exported that excitement and invention to other artists who plug into his gear and blow minds. In concert, A Place To Bury Strangers is nothing short of astounding — a shamanistic experience that bathes listeners in glorious sound, crazed left turns, transcendent vibrations, real-time experiments, brilliant breakthroughs.
And just as many of his peers in the New York City underground seem to be slowing down and settling in, Ackermann’s creativity is accelerating. He’s launched a label of his own: Dedstrange, dedicated to advancing the work of sonic renegades worldwide. He’s also refreshed the group’s lineup, adding bassist John Fedowitz and drummer Sandra Fedowitz, and the band has never sounded more current, or more courageous, or more accessibly melodic. The Hologram EP was the first release from the new lineup, and the group released their highly anticipated sixth album See Through You in 2022 to critical acclaim, touring incessantly since then. In addition to The Sevens, the group is preparing for seventh album due out this fall.
Stream/Purchase “Change Your God”/“It Is Time” + The Sevens:
A Place To Bury Strangers Tour Dates:
Thu. Mar. 21 – Boise, ID @ Treefort Festival [The Sevens Release Show]
Fri. Apr. 5 – Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje $
Sat. Apr. 6 – Köln, DE @ Club Volta &
Sun. Apr. 7 – Karlsruhe, DE @ P8 &
Tue. Apr. 9 – Milan, IT @ ARCI Bellezza &
Wed. Apr. 10 – Bologna, IT @ Coco Club &
Thu. Apr. 11 – Rome, IT @ Monk &
Fri. Apr. 12 – Palermo, IT @ Candelai *
Sat. Apr. 13 – Messina, IT @ Retronouveau †
Mon. Apr. 15 – Zurich CH @ Bogen F &
Tue. Apr. 16 – Bern, DH @ ISC Club *
Wed. Apr. 17 – Marseille, FR @ La Make &
Thu. Apr. 18 – Toulouse, FR @ Le Rex &
Fri. Apr. 19 – Barcelona, ES @ Barcelona Psych Fest [The Sevens Release Show]
Sat. Apr. 20 – Madrid, ES @ El Sol *&
Sun. Apr. 21 – San Sebastián, ES @ Dabadaba &
Tue. Apr. 23 – Paris, FR @ Petit Bain ^
Wed. Apr. 24 – Lille, FR @ Le Grand Mix ^
Thu. Apr. 25 – Maastricht, NL @ Muziekgieterij ^
Fri. May 31 – Brooklyn, NY @ TBA [The Sevens Release Show]
In case you weren’t aware, DeapVally are on their final tour. The power-duo from California have decided to amicably walk away from the band to, among other things, be full-time moms (“jennylee [of Warpaint] is pretty much my personal clothes shopper. I have two kids. I don’t have time to shop,” guitarist / lead singer Lindsey Troy told me during a meet-and-greet when I commented on her killer boots.). So, they’re going out with a big tour that is taking them all over the U.S. and to Europe, playing their debut album, Sistrionix, in its entirety and then a second set of hits and whatever else they want.
First up in Chicago was Sloppy Jane, which I can best describe as part-orchestral rock, part-post-punk, part-acid jazz, part-performance art, and all fascinating. Frontwoman Haley Dahl commands the stage from arrival to departure, singing songs about heartbreak, death, anger, love, and hope. I really want to see her team up with Gary Wilson. She and her bandmates won over a lot of people that night.
Sloppy Jane warping bodies and minds.
Deap Vally came onto the stage in boxing robes that made me think (“Why aren’t those at the merch booth?”) and proceeded to tear into Sistrionix‘s opening track – “End of the World.” It had been several years since I’d seen them, and it was such a delight to not only see them crushing a stage but also hearing their power. Julie Edwards is one of the best rock drummers around, and how Ms. Troy gets so much sound out of one guitar is beyond me.
The Sistronix set was great, with “Raw Material” being a personal favorite that oozed with sexy menace. After a brief break, they came back with wild hits like “Smile More,” “Ain’t Fair,” a crazy, punked-out version of “Perfuction,” and a stunning version of “Royal Jelly” to close the show.
Pure rock and roll right there.
Don’t miss them if they’re near you. They’ll be missed. They’re one of those bands people will discover later and wish they’d seen when they had the chance. Their friend and merch booth manager, Nate, told us at the meet-and-greet that, “Maybe after the kids are grown up and starting their own band I can work on them to do a ten-year Femijism anniversary tour.”
Good luck, Nate. I hope you pull it off.
Keep your mind open.
Thanks to the lucky lady who scored this for letting me snap a photo of it.Thanks to Julie and Lindsey for being so kind to chat with us VIPs and sign so much stuff.#swoon. I’ve met DV each time I’ve seen them, and this time was the most delightful. Thanks for everything, Julie and Lindsey. Have fun. Best of all to you both.
Today, the Omaha-based musician David Nance & Mowed Sound releases their debut, self-titled record on Third Man Records, and shares a new video for the track “Credit Line.” The song according to Nance has existed in some form for almost a decade and has appeared on several different albums, but never felt complete until now. “I guess I was waiting on the riff to show up,” says Nance. The video, directed by Nik Fackler & filmed in an Amish furniture store, was an attempt at making a legitimate television commercial reminiscent of the local furniture store advertisements found everywhere, but shot as if an existential crisis happened right before filming.
Led by Nance on vocals and guitar alongside Kevin Donahue on drums, James Schroeder on guitar, Derrick Higgins and Sam Lipsett on bass, alongside guest appearances from Megan Siebe, Skye Junginger, and Pearl LoveJoy Boyd, Nance brings together a crew of veteran Omaha musicians for a record that showcases Nance’s voracious appetite for anything that rocks, anything that soothes, and all the glorious static and disturbed transmissions in between.
Nance grew up in Grand Island, Nebraska, played in the marching band and discovered punk and garage rock before moving to Omaha and joining the mid-2000 garage punk scene happening there with the band the Forbidden Tigers. Several years spent in Los Angeles with his wife Anna led to a period of songwriting and home recording before they decided to move back to Omaha where he began finding his musical identity and started recording his songs with like-minded friends. What developed was a heavy burned-out rock vibe that still somehow fits in the punk universe.
Not content to mine one musical formula, Nance and company continue to explore new sounds and spaces. From the blistered punk blasts of More Than Enough to the introspective stance on Staunch Honey, Nance and his friends find inspiration from the friends and fellow musicians that have accompanied them on their journey. A fruitful one indeed.
Lighter, the new album by Belgian rockers Tangled Horns, was written and recorded during the pandemic – a time when the band, like most of us, were separated from each other and looking for ways to cope with confusion, misinformation, loneliness, empty toilet paper shelves, and impermanence. It turns out that Light would be, according to the band’s Bandcamp page for the album, “their most personal and introspective work—a coping album born from the unique circumstances.”
One of their coping mechanisms was, and I’m guessing still is, brain-shredding rock. The album opens with Tim Van de Plas telling us “I fell into a deep slumber in the dark and when I woke up I felt lighter.”, and then they launch into “April Fire” – a song chock-full of hard-hitting guitar riffs and a bass line from Raf Vorsselmans that gets your attention right away. “I’m tired of dragging my feet,” Van de Plas sings. Good heavens, weren’t we all in 2021?
“Pig” takes a swing, and connects hard, at rich elitists taking and not giving, or at least not replenishing what they’ve taken from neighborhoods and the Earth. The roaring, squealing guitars from Stef Kustermans and Dennis Van Der Auwera are like buzzing hornets you can’t escape. “Sleeping Dogs” has a bit of a proto-metal sound to it, and a good chunk of menace.
Kris Martens‘ drums on “Suspended Animation” remind me of early Genesis stuff by Phil Collins, and the rest of the song has a neat mix of prog and punk. Van de Plas’ vocals on it have some Bad Religion-like stylings, and his opening wail on “No More Mistakes” is raw fury backed with rough garage-blues guitars. The song builds to a wild frenzy that’s a bit jolting. “Mug,” I’m sure, causes a mosh pit to erupt whenever and wherever it’s played…so be careful where you blast it, or just blast it anywhere and enjoy the chaos.
“Here’s to us and all the rest. I guess we did our best,” Van de Plas sings on the heavy-hitting drinking song “Pissing in the Wind.” “Tick” is a wild, fast ride that’s just under two minutes and packs the power of a song four times longer into it. “Nothing Everything” closes the album with heavy psych riffs, suitable for journeys through deserts or infinite space.
Lighter is as heavy as they come, but it’s designed to elevate us all.
“Being in a band is like being in a marriage: sometimes it’s magical, sometimes it’s unbearably challenging.”
That’s from the notes on Deap Vally‘s Bandcamp page for their third, and what appears to be final album – Marriage. It was a prophetic statement in 2021 because Deap Vally are now on their farewell tour, having decided to call it quits and focus on other projects and their respective families. No worries, everyone, it’s an amicable split – judging from everything I’ve read, photos I’ve seen, and their extensive tour dates (including, it was recently announced, Levitation France in May 2024).
Marriage saw the band not only continuing their power-duo sound, but also branching out to work with other musicians and producers (as they’d done with The Flaming Lips) to stretch out the sounds they could create.
The album opens with their signature sound of roaring guitars, Julie Edwards‘ frenetic drumming, and snarling dual vocals on “Perfuction.” It has great lyrics that only Deap Vally seem to be able to write about balancing a sex life with work life, family life, and just…well, life, such as “Dirty dishes, clothes on the floor. I haven’t showered in days, and I sleep till four. Try to keep it together, but fuck it, whatever. I’m a mess, but I’m clever. So, fuck it, whatever.”
“Billions” punches rich elitists square in the mouth. “Magic Medicine” has some of Lindsey Troy‘s hottest solos on the record. “I Like Crime” brings in Jennie Vee (of Eagles of Death Metal) on bass and assisting vocals, giving the song extra thump and mysterious sensuality. “Nothing’s gonna stop me,” Troy sings on “Phoenix,” an upbeat song with a fiery edge about not letting that life-grind destroy you. “Give Me a Sign” has Deap Vally calling out for clarity. “Give me a sign to make up my mind,” they sing in perhaps the most obvious portent of their future dissolution of the band.
Troy lets her lover know he’d better be careful on “Better Run,” as she might overwhelm him. This seems like an even stronger warning when you consider the next track is titled “I’m the Master.” Edwards’ driving rhythms on it are top-notch. “High Horse” has K.T. Tunstall and Peaches joining forces with Troy and Edwards in a floor-stomper complete with Peaches putting down a rap verse. “Where Do We Go” could be another harbinger of their decision to close the Deap Vally book. “Tsunami” is a crunchy, fiery rocker (“I won’t stop till I get what’s mine!”) that I’m sure slays live. The final Deap Vally album closes with “Look Away” (with jennylee of Warpaint) and the band singing about visions of peace, relaxation, and love (“In your arms, it’s a holiday.”).
The signs were there, and now we have one last chance to see them live. I wish them all the best. They gave us three fine records, which is more than many other bands have done. Marriage is a good way to go out.
Filth Is Eternal‘s Find Out is one of the grungiest, rawest, grimiest punk albums I’ve heard in years. All that’s missing from it are the words “Fuck Around and…” in front of the title, because FIE will flatten you at the first opportunity.
The album opens with ten times the rage Nirvana was playing on Bleach on the track “Half Wrong.” The soft, almost gentle hi-hat work at the beginning of “Crawl Space” is a fake. Don’t fall for it, because the heavy punch of the song is right behind it – knocking you against the ropes in the blink of an eye. “Magnetic Point” and “Cherish” have this great heavy groove to them, and the drums on “Roll Critical” are nuts. You keep thinking, “Is that just one person making all that racket?”
“Curious Thing” is, I think, a love song hidden inside a punk rager. By the time we get to “Into the Curve,” the halfway point of the album, you’re barely able to breathe…and there are still seven more tracks to go before you can rest. The second half of the record puts more emphasis and clarity on the vocals and includes some straight-up garage rock grooves. “Body Void” takes on a bit of a psychedelic touch with the drumming, and “The Gate” continues this groove into almost King Gizzard-like psych-metal. “Signal Decay,” like many songs on the album speaks to issues of gender, body acceptance, sexual attraction, the confusing world of love, and how there are many others in the same boat seeking acceptance (“I’m not alone in this lonely place.”).
“All Mother” stomps the gas (and drum) pedal and drives down the middle of the highway. “Last Exit” practically tears through a construction zone to jump an unfinished bridge over a rubble-strewn ravine. The album closes with “Loveless,” which isn’t a My Bloody Valentine cover, but is a sludgy, crushing track that leaves nothing on the table.
Seriously, this is a stunning record. Everything on it works – the growling / howling vocals, the wicked guitar riffs, the menacing bass, the explosive drums…it all works. Do not fuck around with FIE. You will find out.
