This British band takes notes from HEALTH when the album gets in its groove with lighter androgynous vocals, giving melodic chant that is not unlike the delivery of their California-based predecessors. It sounds good but too familiar. HEALTH is one of my favorite new bands, so I like the sonic texture of this sound. Still, I do not need a HEALTH tribute band in my rotation as I can just listen to the genuine article, so the goal of this review is to listen for who is band is, and seek out answers to who they are as artists. Rachel from Cage Fight lends her scream to "Coherent". The vocals deviate from the HEALTHy vocal phrasing, which helps solidify their identity.
"Scars" finds them reaching a middle ground of leaning on their influences but spreading the sonic wings a little more to step out from that shadow. The guitars commonly do not occupy the forefront of the mix, which would give things a heavier crunch if they were, though the other side of this argument is it does create a more unique sonic space, rather than these guys being a metal band who dabbles in industrial. Still, they self-identify as an industrial noise-pop band, which is a fair enough explanation given the fact that industrial beats are the primary percussive drive. "Cause// Worthless" has a robotic march that is tempered by an ethereal ambiance.
"Fear" steps into more of a middle ground by taking on most of the sonic colors they have already used and not committing to push them too strongly in either direction. In doing so this provides a pretty accurate version of who they are, if someone asked to hear this band I think it would be the most honest snapshot of who they are. "We' has more of an industrial groove to it, that coasts along the lines of what synth-driven cyberpunk sounds like in 2025. More atmosphere and experience than the previous songs. The vocals are just a haunting texture. "Wasted" has more punch and hook to it. The guitars play a larger role.
"In This Trend" has more movement, bringing some sound from the late 80s into their pretty hate machine of sound,. It works for what this is. While the dynamics shifts on this album follow a pretty solid formula, their overall sound is cool, despite not being the most original, I'll give this a 9, though not sure how much rotation it will get since I am more likely just going to listen to HEALTH when I am in the mood for this, but you might just want industrial noise pop and ask less questions regarding its origins.
No comments:
Post a Comment