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I've been a huge fan of yours for a couple years now, and I just noticed no one has reviewed this album yet? For shame!
To start with, two things stand out: it's Dusthoney, and it's a shift in direction and execution. Some tracks are much more . . . not aggressive, but -hostile-, in a way that's not easy to describe, but Chlorophyll would be foremost.
I'm not quite sure what -meaning- to settle on even though the album as a whole -does- seem to have a unifying meaning, or at least a very strong couple of themes.
But it seems like any or all of: an all-night vigil for someone who's just threatened suicide, credibly; a wake; a dreadful falling out; a disappointing family; a seriously contemplated suicide; friends you wish you could just ditch already.
Wanting to leave forever; wanting to come back at last; being deeply frustrated and deeply disappointed, and seeing no better response to it than a glib half-remembered paraphrase, to keep distant from something hurtful. Using sarcasm to keep anything from hitting the raw nerves.
It's actually a little frustrating since even with titles, few of the songs speak at all for themselves, like the shy, nerdy weirdo who decorates the wall at the back of the room.
But that's also - unsurprisingly - one of the most distinctive and best features of the work: you have to engage it, and come up with likely suspects for what it all means. Not unlike life.
I've heard your other work with Tryad and Daniel Laufer [just got _In Between_ and _Remaining a Stranger_]. This kind of disappointed me, as well as you did elsewhere, and I think I know why:
This is a very new direction for you as you said yourself. Unfortunately, you kind of thrashed around, conceptually speaking. The biggest setback, I think, started right in "Revolt": you used a pretty simplistic meter and rhyme scheme. It seemed like your anger got the best of your ability to -express- your anger.
Other songs definitely shone, though, especially "Text Toy". It was so creepy! I didn't think such heavy vocoding could do -that-. If I ever get any of that "musical talent" stuff, I won't forget that trick.
But I kind of thought it would have worked better toward the end, after the revolution has been televised, turned into a meme on FaceSpace or whichever, sold at Hot Topic, and worked over for any traces of comedic / nostalgic value on Family Guy, and still the underlying societal and infrastructural problems were never addressed, even when acknowledged.
I know he's from the commercial industry, but I think you could learn a lot from the development and progression of Nine Inch Nail's Trent Reznor. He's also a very smart, geeky guy who sees a lot worth getting angry about, but while in some of his earlier work, he practically frothed at the mouth [and thus didn't express himself nearly as clearly as he seemed to want to], later he kept the same indignation and sense of injustice - the same anger - but focused his head and made his message immanently clear.
I think this is some music we could use more of [and not just Jamendo listeners, at that]. But I think you could use more experience in this "direction". It's a good direction, if you don't get lost in incoherence.
For a short little debut, this shows some talent. Vocalist sounds like a young James Hetfield from Metallica. The backup vocals on the third track work well.
The vocalist could use more practice, and the intro on each song runs -really- long, to the point where I wondered when they'd get on with it. Posting lyrics to the songs would be appreciated, too.
All told, a pretty decent first demo. Not great, but I might check back with these guys later, their next album should be worth a listen.
Just as dreamy, puzzling and weird as the art suggests. Songs like 'Run' sound really jazzy and catchy. That's probably the most 'singable' song about the end of the world I know of.
'Watchtheclouds' drawls along in a really lazy, apathetic way, which is the only way it would work, considering the lyrics.
'Cosmos' sounds strained, but gradually builds to something that sounds almost hopeful.
As for the instrumental tracks? They sound like someone took dance music and used glitch music to beat it into a coma. Which I kind of like.
As I listen to this album, a couple things come through immediately: clear, strong, unapologetic vocals, clean guitar lines [and a violin, too!] But mostly, I hear a person. I don't pretend to think I know them very well, or that they accurately reflect the flesh-and-blood human who penned the lyrics [as the lyrics seem to take priority over any other consideration; an approach I love dearly]. But I -do- feel confident enough to say that this person [who might not -really- exist the same way the singer does] is a weird, quirky, honest sort, who gets mad as Hell about injustice, but like anyone else, maybe doesn't know how to make anything better, but that won't stop them from saying something about it.
It sounds like a soundtrack for A Softer World, if you read that.
In particular, I liked the sultry shift in "Floodplain", and the violin on "Go" really added to the sound. "Beginning of the End" at first struck me as a little melodramatic, but on closer inspection, I heard a couple details that made it very human, such as millenial belief in the end of humanity followed immediately by going out and partying. The kind of contradiction any ordinary person might do if faced with The End. Mostly, though, I keep listening to "Citizen, Go Back to Sleep". It doesn't stop surprising me how the tone stays [facially] upbeat and friendly through most of the song, even though the lyrics blatantly describe a survailance-fuled police-state.
The only thing I don't care for is how few tracks there are. I can't wait for more.
I'll probably be listening to this album for quite a while.
I agree with mistouille about how energetic the style is. And it is very garage-like, which I personally appreciate, if the playing is still skillful. The instrumentals and vocals on this album are pretty skillful, and the transition from piano to guitar on "Who I Am" was nice.
But one flaw holds this album back. The lyrics repeat themselves too much, making the songs sound boring, like they have run out of things to say, but still can't stop.
I like the sound well enough, but the lyrics just get boring. I'd like to see the next album, just the same.
Clear vocals, resonating lyrics, catchy hooks, and a good length for a first album. I loved the use of turn-tables, and the bass was just great. There are a few sound-effects I wish I knew how to make, that appear on "Farther Than a Visible Skyline" that really added to the mood of the track.
I also really dug the cover art, and though I should probably feel bad about it, that image was why I clicked and listened.
If I had to come up with a criticism, it would be that this is -not- 'rock', or 'alternative'. It hit my ears as any modern metal album would.
I think I found a new favorite artist, and I can't wait for the next album.
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