Sometimes in life you need to take the time to step outside your comfort zone and experience new and different things. By taking time out of your day to listen to the latest record from Mind Brains would classify as doing just that. Consisting of members of Marshmellow Coast, Olivia Tremor Control, of Montreal, Music Tapes and more, The Athens, GA band doen’t just think outside the box it obliterates said box. Mind Brains‘eagerness to look at music in an abstract manner allows the band to offer up tunes that are a far cry from the everyday fare found all over the radio and on TV. Utilizing a variety of instruments, computers, synthesizers and other noise makers, (I am pretty sure there is a car horn on at least one song) Mind Brains has turned a collection of unrelated noises into a damn fine batch of tunes.
The album welcomes listeners with the track “Happy Stomp”. Built around spacey vocal harmonies, traditional and nontraditional melodies are layered into the track creating an impressive soundscape. The thumping rhythms escort the listener through the valley of beeps, boops, strings, spaceship noises and other tones until they reach the end. On“Morning Before the Morning Before Dawn” Mind Brains creates an enormous ocean of sound that only parts to allow the chanting vocals to surface. Giving the song “The Era of Late Heavy Bombardment” an industrial feel, the music starts slowly before building into a intense brooding piece. The song ominously progresses creating a false sense of anxiety before quietly fading away. One of the better tracks from the record has to be “Body Horror”. Catchy pop melodies traverse the fuzz filled chunky sounds keeping the track from becoming a chaotic mess.
Mind Brains self titled album is truly an acquired taste. If you approach the record with an open mind and embrace the nontraditional songs you will enjoy the listening experience. Like most artistic expression music cannot be contained by a set formula and when people try to do so they get generic music that all sounds the same. Just look at the shape of today’s popular music. I say you should avoid the norm, step outside your comfort zone and let Mind Brains crawl around in your head for a little while.
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