With each release, and line-up change, A Place To Bury Strangers have sort of shifted their sound away from straight shoegaze. That shifts continues on Synthesizer, the new record from the three-piece. And the results are fairly engaging.
The throbbing "Join the Crowd" has momentum and force, as does the far noisier "Bad Idea", a real highlight here. The trio churns up a storm, creating a wave of noise that threatens to obliterate any melody under it. The slight New Wave flavors of "You Got Me" make the song another standout for stylistic reasons, though far better is "Have You Ever Been in Love", a bath of guitar squall. "It's Too Much" neatly blends bits of synth with thudding drums and feedback. It's brief and another gem.
This was an album that surprised me. A Place to Bury Strangers do one thing very well, but at least on Synthesizer they are trying to do a few more. Solid, respectable noise rock, this one pleases on its own modest terms. And, thankfully, it's more early JAMC and Loop than it is MBV or another clone of that band.
Synthesizer by A Place to Bury Strangers is out now. Details below.
[Photo: Ebru Yildzi]