Ride : "Interplay"

I really liked "Weather Diaries" the first album of their comeback. This album is both more surreal and more optimistic. I am sure with the last album I mentioned these guys occupying a similar sonic zip code as Stone Roses. Though it sounds like they are smoking more pot than Stone Roses on this album as it carries an alluring swirl. It is wonderfully mixed, though I am giving it the initial listen very loudly through a pair of headphones which is the recommended manner in which this album is best ingested. It was produced in a manner that captured the most pristine sounds possible from the instruments. The bass tone rumbles perfectly. This provides the needed throb to hold together these dreams that they are passing off as songs.  The dynamics are stunning as the intense jam of "Light in a Quiet Room" is pretty stunning. 

"Monaco" sounds like it is a long-lost song from the late 80s. It dances with a radio-ready groove, though today's radio is not ready for it. I like the atmosphere of "I Came to See the Wreck" which gives spaces for the vocals to coast along its smooth grooves. "Stay Free" is the first song to not keep the momentum going as it breaks down to an acoustic strum and drones over the sound haunting it. It works for what it does, I just prefer where they were going for the first five songs. Thanks to the bass line of "Last Night I Went Somewhere to Dream".  Though the arrangement is a little odd, with the section you might expect the chorus to just drift off. It should be mentioned these guys have captured some truly stunning sounds on this album.

I like the vocal production on "Sunrise Chaser". The song is more upbeat than I expected but it works well.  Once again a killer bass line proves to be better than a sturdy guitar riff on "Midnight Rider". "Portland Rocks" drones on its narcotic pulse in a more intense take of what came from the 90s in this vein. Speaking of the 90s they do a really great job of blending electronic elements with their more organic instruments for "Essaouira". Nothing is dynamically complex, it just works off feeling. The syrupy coo of the vocals continues to work for them. This falls more on the dream pop side of shoegaze. The last song is so thick on the ambiance that despite the vocals being the focal point it feels more like an outro rather than a song. I will give this album a 9.5, as aside from the last track it excels at what it set out to do and bridges songwriting with the most lush sonic trippiness they could have captured and still kept these songs in the physical plane of existence. If you are a fan or a fan of the shoe gaze genre this album is a must. 

pst159