|
|
|
93 Million Miles From The Sun - Self titled album.
Shoegaze...
I'm hearing the influence of this genre more and more in music these days and what a great thing this is.
93 Million Miles From The Sun are no exception and proudly wear their aching shoegaze hearts on their sleeves.
Phasing
guitars triumphantly rise and hang on clouds of delay. The bass chugs
rhythmically and the drums drive along steadily keeping a delicate wall
of sound from crumbling. The vocals have that airy Dream Pop feel that
Ride and Chapterhouse used so effectively over their captivating musical soundscapes.
Musically, the reference points and influences are
put to great use! The guitars of Slowdive and Ride swim along side the
buoyant bass tones of Chapterhouse and MBV. As the drums carry
everything along harmoniously, you hear everything surface in the mix.
The production on this album is amazing. Clarity, control, and expression--that's classic shoegaze!
The
stand out track on this album, "Gone For Today," starts off with a beat
reminiscent of the Cocteau Twins "Wax And Wane."After a couple of bars
the drums, guitar, and bass kick in
and swirls of effects start rising dramatically in the background. The
pace is slowed again, whilst the vocals pine for something lost. You
feel the energy building and the song sprints into the best chorus I
have heard this year! I just want to jump, sing and swing my arms
around and celebrate the affective feeling the band are creating.
However, I
won't as I will fall over the hoover again!
This band have studied hard and
the results have put this album up there at the top of the class along
with Slowdive, Chapterhouse and MBV. The silky smooth production makes
the album sound up to date rather than tired and anachronistic.
"Everything
Today" is very danceable with a beat with quite an arrogant swagger about it. The
effects on the guitars are on a different level. They rise above the drums, the bass hangs in the middle of the mix, pushing up and down, as
guitar effects fly off in every direction before coming swirling back
down to join the wonderfully distorted mix..
"Darkstar" is the
tight sound of a thousand phase and fuzz pedals splashing inside your
ears. This is vintage noisy shoegaze. All MBV drones and atmospherics!
I bet this song would sound amazing live.
"Come
Back Down"
swivels, shakes and jogs merrily along. Guitars drone in brightly
coloured waves and all the while the beat energizes the whole track.
The lyrics are hard to discern but that's the same on most of the album
and is part of its charm. The vocals create an additional layer to the
beautiful plethora of sound that 93 Million Miles From The Sun already
create.
This album has been on play since the
day I got it. It's originality is highlighted in the production and the
fact that on each listen I discover something new in the sound and its affect on myself.
I
hope that I get to see this band live! If the concert experience creates
even half the atmoshphere that the record does, then this cannot be missed.
Like a great painting, this album brims with colour, has a great use of effects and is truly other worldly.
The sound of the sun exploding whilst Jackson Pollock throws it on canvas.
93 Million Miles From The Sun are closer than they think.
7/10
93 Million Miles From The Sun - Myspace page
Nicky
| |
|