Yea, going thru and listening to a few songs a second time, including this one. It’s one of the best on this for sure. This album is good considering these guys have been around a long time. I’ll be listening to it again a lot these next couple weeks.

Wow, this album does sound different. I kinda miss the old crazyness but this is a different beast.

Not sure yet... Will report back after repeated listens

There’s some wild stuff happening - musically - in a lot of these songs. Really stood out with headphones. Always enjoy the strange sounds the band comes up with

That's a strong endorsement. Looking forward to my first listen.

Apparently Brock tried to play as little guitar as possible on this one to challenge the songs. There’s a lot of strange, vintage instruments on here. One song he even plays “soda cans”

I’m really enjoying this album. Been waiting for a long time for it.

I'm not sure this one is for me. I don't hate it by any means. There are several tracks that I think I'll probably keep returning to but the overall sound aesthetic is off. It feels thin and derivative.

Joe - see my last post in albums of 2021 about Faye Webster. She’s right in your wheelhouse.

I didn't see that post and I've added that album to my list. I'm excited to check it out. I don't think I've ever heard of her before?

It may be derivative, but it’s creative and I don’t think it sounds thin at all. There’s a lot going on in this album. The song psychobain posted is pretty awesome. Album has a nice feel to me. I liked the last one but I like this one more already. I actually would use your opinion to describe how I feel about their last one. But we all have our quirks.

I didn't listen to their last one. So I can't speak to that. I can only talk about this one. Which, you're right, does have a lot going on. It's a super busy record without much depth.

"Thin" might be the wrong word, though I still think it applies to the sound regardless of how much is happening. Maybe lightweight is better. It's a minor record, busy without heft, that sounds like a band trying to sound fresh, but it didn't strike me as authentic. "Forced," isn't the right word. Because there is an effortlessness to it. It just sounds inauthentic, to me.

But I only heard it once. These are all first impression observations. I could do a total 180 on second listen. I also listened to it as part of a string of new records. So that maybe gave it an unfair and unintentional context. I liked the other records in that run more.

Listened to this twice on a run this morning. Pretty solid!

What I did like: Wooden Soldiers, Transmitting Receiving

What I didn't like: Almost every other song in it's entirety

Yeah this album is a dud, still a couple songs worth hearing though.

This thing is pretty great. Certainly nothing I feel inclined to skip at this point. Fun headphones listen, too.

one of the songs reminds me of Steal My Sunshine

This song actually felt like a bump in the road to me. Not enough going on throughout, and adding strings at the end of a song doesn't automatically make it grand or impactful.

Unless you're Mogwai*

Good album, but not great. I think the track ordering kind of sucks. The first half doesn't do enough to hold one's attention, while the second half hides all of the gems, with a few exceptions.

Also the production sounds flat. Y'all got me hyped for that.

Man I absolutely love that song. It’s like an Ugly Casanova on steroids. Or a big brother to “3 inch horses”

'3 Inch Horses' is one of my fav. MM tracks, and I'm definitely not hearing any similarities at this stage. I'll give it a few more listens.