Review: History - Ghosts in the City

Label: 24 Hour Service Station

Released: December 7, 2007

What happens when Fugazi meets Black Sabbath? History. Okay, so time will tell if History the band actually makes history, but there's no denying that the potential is there. Their album, Ghosts in the City, isn't just the result of these influences slapped together in some random fashion, but a natural meeting of the former's mathed up passion and the latter's heavy groove (tempered perhaps into a less sludgy though no less compelling hard rock sound). Add to this the airy effects of two keyboards and their sound finds an even more unique voice for itself. What really makes the album great though is that it provides both the frenzied excitement of calculated hardcore and the pumping, thumping heaviness whose legacy is at the root of pretty much any decent hard rock and heavy metal, all with more than a touch of madness.

Ratings
Satriani: 7/10
Zappa: 8/10
Dylan: 7/10
Aretha: 7/10
Overall: 7/10

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Review: Building the State - Faces in the Architecture

Label: Amnot Records

Released: October 2, 2007

Both indie and math rock can easily degenerate into dispassion on their own. Combining the two should increase that possibility exponentially, making Building the State's latest EP all the more remarkable.

Ringing guitars, complex bass lines, precision drumming, indie rock vocals and ambient sound make up layer upon layer of distinct, yet intertwined noise. Unlike most vocal music where the instrumentation just provides backing for a voice, Building the State is made up of strictly equal parts. In a sense, they seem to be conceptually more like an instrumental group. They capture the ambling pace of indie rock and have just enough pop sense to mask their math rhythms. With only four tracks over its 20 minutes, the songs have room to develop into multi-part pieces, but the transitions are so smooth that the movement from passage to passage is almost imperceptible, moving from the calm before the storm to the storm itself before anyone even notices. This is a pristine album without being cold. It feels loose, but is actually incredibly tight and that's no easy feat.

In a nutshell, Faces in the Architecture draws the best from both indie and math and the combination is on par with the best that both genres have to offer.

Rating: 9/10

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