| There are a lot of riders that come out of Texas. This time around its the four piece rock band
Broadcast Sea. Their new album "Wounded Soldier" came out last month and like the slow current that
drives the sea, it took me a while to get to this. They have been listed as sounding like bands such
as Bear Vs. Shark and Hot Snakes, so I wanted to see what exactly I was getting in to. Let's just
hope its not like the Dead Sea, leaving me all salty.
Now if you were expecting Broadcast Sea to be any old ordinary rock band then you will sorely
mistaken. When I first heard them the only thing that came to my mind was that they sounded like a
"rough around the edges" Finch. It's because of the off kilter note transfers and the raw chord
reverb that is ever present, which makes the comparison so easy. And while there is a lot of fuzzy
transference coming from their hard sections, it still pulls you in.
The mellow parts are placed comfortably throughout which is necessary is a CD that has such
rambunctious demeanor. The vocals are subpar as hazy singing/shouts sound distant, but they do
at least go along with the theme of nebulous uncertainty. The album is also only 8 tracks long, and
while the length of each track is longer than normal, there are some bands that have 8 track EPs. In
general I thought this record could improve on a lot.
First, the insipid use of fuzzy production that turned everything into a fog-fest as you search for
your hand in front of your face. And second, the dull singing that felt out of place for a majority
of the album. The unique guitar transitions and the times that had clear chords were what made this
album miss the avoid pile. But barely. The quirky music that bands like Finch come out with is this
genre of rock done right, but I'm afraid that Broadcast Sea is just too hazy and belligerent to hit
the mark this time.
~ Derek
April 17 2008 |
