South Korea's Say Sue Me get lumped in with shoegaze acts, and even sometimes earn the dreaded dream pop badge. But the music of the band is richer and more expansive than what usually gets tossed in those two genre buckets these days. The group's new record, The Last Thing Left, their first in four years, is out this Friday.
Opener "The Memory of Time" unfurls at a deliberate pace, echoes of Codeine and early Low here, while "Still Here", a plodding Bettie Serveert-ish number reveals further pleasures. The guitar-licks and vocals are down-tempo, understated, but the overall effect is a potent one. Elsewhere, "Around You" and "No Real Place" up the energy levels, with the jangle-pop elements here driving things forward with real propulsive fury, even as "To Dream" tempers the vibe. This one, like mid-period Yo La Tengo, is a real charmer, as is the title cut, a Ride-y rave-up.
Say Sue Me have a knack for knowing how to modulate all of this, such that little of The Last Thing Left feels as predictable as it could have in other hands. For every moment that feels a little bit familiar, the overall mood and execution reveal surprises in presentation, choices made and empty spaces left empty. The overall vibe of The Last Thing Left pleases a listener the way the first few Galaxie 500 and Yo La Tengo records did, even if portions of this briefly exhibit their own unique style of indie fire.
The Last Thing Left is out on Friday via Damnably, with details via the Bandcamp link below.
[Photo: Lim So]