Review: Gay Beast - “Second Wave”
Gay Beast
Second Wave
(Skin Graft Records, 2009)
Grade: A
*MP3: Gay Beast - “EEEXXPPPAAANNNDDDIIINNNGGG”
There are many adjectives that can be used to describe Second Wave, the latest LP from experimental Minneapolis trio Gay Beast: Cacophonous, frantic, confusing, arrhythmic, and jarring are but a few that immediately come to mind. But here’s another watchword that, amongst all the other descriptors, seems unlikely: melodic.
Granted, that essential quality may be hard to discern amongst Wave’s admittedly difficult blend of no-wave’s strangled guitar-noise, math-rock’s anarchic drum-pounds, and free jazz-quoting saxophone lines.
However, if listeners dig deep enough, they’ll find that funky, rhythm-intensive grooves and sing-songy melodies emerge from the most unlikely of places—particularly in the reggae-tinged (it’s in the syncopation of the vocal melody, trust me) album opener “Beach” and noise-rock bludgeoner “Aspirin.”
Helping to anchor what could be a disastrously complicated sound are the synth-and-vocal work of Dan Luedtke, which help ground on otherwise lofty art-rock sound. But, as listeners will discover upon hearing bright blasts of instrumental interplay like “White Diamonds” and album closer “Reprise,” “lofty” isn’t synonymous with “pretentious.”
If anything, as a listening experience, Second Wave is like hearing the children of outré music genres play in the sandbox of art. All they want you to do is the join them—and, based on the hypnotic, wholly unique sound presented by Gay Beast, who could resist one of the best records of the year?
(Jon Graef)
Posted 2 years ago
