| Noisetank
(lovesyou) |
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First, to eliminate any confusion that may stem from the sheer quantity of words thrown around in the naming of this collective effort, Noisetank (lovesyou) is the parenthetically ornamented moniker given to the band at hand, and Glee, Ad Nauseaum, and How It All Works Out is a four-track EP. Now, the Tank (as I am referring to the project from here on out, for clarity’s sake) is a collaboration driven by Detroit-area purveyors of all walks of independent art, Focus Media. [See “My Life with the Detroit Techno Militia,” above] Lesser-known local artists from disparate musical universes perform on each track, giving birth to four tracks of electronically underpinned rock. Glee features the work of a lot of artists not well known outside of specific circles within the Detroit area, so it doesn’t function as the curiosity piece that you might hope for out of a collaborative effort. But lack of all-star team-ups aside, Focus Media’s first offering in an anticipated line of releases has some attention-grabbing moments. There are two major forces vying for control on Glee. The first is an emotional sentiment that leans towards the ultra light’n’fluffy mid-to-late ‘90s Get Up Kids side of things, the side of things that I won’t call “emo,” just because whenever I use the word “emo” I end up on some ridiculous explanatory rant about Rites of Spring and Moss Icon and end up grumbling about “these goddamned kids these days,” when I’m not even that old. But you get what I’m saying. It’s the kind of stuff that would immediately appeal to a college girl with a minimum of fifteen million pins on the strap of her book satchel. The other driving force behind the disc, presumably provided by Focus Media’s Doc, who offers up all the beats for these selections, is a darker electronic element. “Wreakless For A Wreckless Youth” and “Find Solace In The Gentle Arms Of Love” both stumble a little in their attempt to take “indie-tronic” in a more brooding direction, but the disc hits its stride as things approach the more blissful (gleeful?) side of things. With “Shortys
Running Numbers (forthemob),” the Tank’s synthesis results
in a bit of candy-coated emotional rock (and I say that, once again,
because I’m trying my best not to use the ambiguous “e”
word) that’s kind of infectious, no matter what your take
is on that particular style. “Rabbits Dead, Easter Day”
follows in suit, with enough electronic beats and skewed noises
amid the chiming guitars to keep things interesting. Stemming from
the same thought process that probably gave birth to The Postal
Service, Glee won’t leave you feeling quite the same vexation
as, say, that band’s album Give Up, you know, that “I
enjoy this disc, but so does my lame 13-year-old sister –
who am I?” sensation. Why? Because it comes from an independent
local collective, so you can listen without grinding your gears
over being a potential shill for the Warped Tour generation marketing
frenzy. Glee is a good start for the up-and-coming Focus Media collective,
and did I mention the cover art features a pink-haired half-bunny
half-schoolgirl wearing a gas mask? I don’t know what it means,
but I like it. —Matthew Stern |
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