Been six years since the Flordia punk band released their last album. They return with the kind of angular dissonant hardcore-tinged rock you expect from them with Christina Michelle crying out with the same level of abrasive edge she had last time around. The album gains more nuance with each song, and it is more of a sonic tapestry than the raw outpouring of emotion they initially hit you with. She screams less and sings more on "Idealized" as it finds its jagged groove quite smoothly.
By the time the album gets to the title track, the guitar is relaxed into more of an indie rock jangle. They are not settling for casually musing without tension building. This goes down in a manner that is not until what Fugazi used to do. She clearly holds hardcore in her veins and is still prone to screaming her aggression out as needed. There are more sonic colors on this album vocally and in the more experimental guitar tones captured. The Fugazi comparison can also be drawn concerning the drum groove of "A Welcome Change" To contrast the introspection of the previous song, there is a hooky syncopation to "Overwatering" where she declares she takes the sweetness from the inside.
They do not abandon their punk side easily as they lash out with three more aggressive songs the first being the more up-tempo attack of " No Release". Things are given enough room to breathe by breaking down to a bass rumble on "The Sharpening" where lyrically she seems to be having a hard time sorting through interpersonal relationships. "Spaced Out' is the first song where they feel like they are content with settling for being within the safe confines of punk music.
The dynamic range of "Newtau" is pretty stunning, the way the explosive shift takes place makes it one of the album's strongest songs. 'Dallas" might get called out for being shoe-gaze, but it really just sounds like a love letter to some of the catchy but not radio-dominating moments of 90s alternative rock, which I am fine with. I will round this album up to a 10 and see how it grows, on me this was worth the wait, as they have matured into more than a hard-core band,. Out on Death Wish Records.
No comments:
Post a Comment