Labasheeda : "Blueprints"

Here is the Abyss there is a never-ending influx of albums submitted for me to review, but there are only so many hours in the day for me to listen to music, so a band has to have either garnered enough buzz for me to see if the hype is warranted or they have to stand out enough for me to take interest. This band from the Netherlands stood out. This album came out in November, so I am just now catching up. They play a quirky style of garage rock with a great deal of charm in it's jangle. They are not however the raw basic three-chord style that you commonly associate with garage rock, there is a sonic heft to the jangle of guitars that sets them on the more indie rock side of post-punk. More post, less punk. On a song like "Closure," this leads to a moodiness that runs as a simmering undercurrent beneath the song. 

They come closer to the punk side of the equation with the palm-muted tension of 'Sparkle".  They meander slightly on the thoughtful "Homeless", but it proves to still be an effective song in terms of its overall ebb and flow.  Lead singer Saskia's voice stands out as she is just herself when she steps up to the mic. This is refreshing as so many singers these days are merely emulating someone else. There is a melancholy apathy to her voice that reminds me 90s alternative rock at times, but there is not a particular singer you can say she draws inspiration from. I like where she goes with her voice on the breather "Vanity". 

"Minus Minus" highlights another one of this band's strengths, which is never writing two songs that are alike. Saskia's voice grounds them to sound like who they are , but at times there is a more jarring angular twitch to the groove, at others, things flow more languidly with more varied instrumentation being employed. They might be as dark as what I normally listen to, but things shift in that direction for "Procedure" which might be my favorite song on the album. A similar urgency also haunts "Tigre Royal" though midway into the song things the drums gain momentum. The album closes with the more folky musings of "What Remains is Love". 

This album caught me by surprise and I found myself drawn into more than I expected, when the violin or viola is brought out things get really interesting, but even in their most raw form , this band delivers off-kilter often angular songs with a great deal of thought and heart invested in them. I will give this album a 9, and recommend it to readers who like indie rock with experimental quirk or post-punk that is organic and colors the songs with more than just shades of gray. This is worth a listen for sure.  

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