| Boy in Static’s new record is a lovely, atmospheric mood piece, but ultimately it’s a heavily influenced work; light-on for any true innovation. All bells and reverberating guitars, accordion solos and whispered vocals, Violet’s opening track, "First Love," is straight out of a Sophia Coppola soundtrack.The atmospheric, New Wave rhythms, offset by a subtle lo-fi feel makes for a full, evocative sound, not unlike Aussie group Epicure's most recent release, Main Street, but with far more sonic breadth. One tag that Boy in Static may have to suffer is ‘derivative’; while they have developed their sound now over two records, their influences are still very apparent. Sigur Rós and the electro/ambience of Múm are the most obvious of these, but there is also some of the off-beat musicianship and arrangements found in the likes of Bjork; these groups now common references for those who own a sampler and have a hankering for string-laden, oft-depressing soundscapes. As far as breadth of musical talent goes, there’s a lot to be said for vocalist Alexander Chen and his crew. "Where It Ends" takes the basic of the opening track and infuses synth and live strings, and in "Violet," Chen’s vocals are woven sweetly and gently throughout more swirling synth and a gorgeous, effects-laden, looped piano part. "Tear Down" is both the album’s peak, and it’s most complex, elusive composition. While so much of Violet can be easily digested, this track spans the genres of post-punk and post-rock, with a few more in between, whilst staying true to the band’s overall mission statement. The electronic beats underpinning the song are managed perfectly so as not to be too oppressive, and the tremolo guitars add intensity while the vocals drift seamlessly in and out. Such a talent for mixing electro, pop and classical sensibilities into a cohesive blend is impressive for such a relatively young group. Chen’s vocals are one of the band’s weaknesses. It is very easy to say that Chen’s downfall, in practical terms, is his decidedly underwhelming voice – which is generally hidden in the band’s production. With the vocals distorted and chock-full of effects, lyrics are a non-event; Chen might as well be doing a Sigur Rós – singing in a made-up language like Hopelandic – it’s so difficult to make out some of the words. Nonetheless, there’s an endearing quality in Chen’s restraint. He doesn’t aim for high notes, avoids any inklings of falsetto or pitch-testing exercises, preferring to stick to a natural, understated and pleasant range. Sounding at times like little-known Norwegian, Magnet (if you’ve never heard of him, try out On Your Side; a very good record), he opts for more of a drone than a soaring vocal presence, which sits nicely against the strings and synth, adding a different frequency to the sonic landscape. This is a good example of a vocalist knowing his limitations, and using his voice for purposes beyond the cognition of the pop-idol world. When you can hear the lyrics, however, there’s an uneasy sensation that Chen is as much an Emo kid as those lads from My Chemical Romance, and about as capable of in-depth psychologically descriptive and poetic prose as those evil pop-punks (their name is not to be uttered on this page) who coined that “I’m sorry I can’t be perfect” abomination from a couple of years back. When his nasal drawl lets loose the phrase “I’m covered in the skin/Of dying dreams,” it’s about as considered and analytical a sentiment as one would expect from any high school art show. Despite the vastness of the album’s sound, and the emotive core of each song, there’s still a lot of room for growth in the depth of the subject matter. In this way it’s a confused record: although the music will likely grab the attention of those who envelop themselves in the likes of Sigur Rós, Múm and Mono, the lyrics and intended emotional impact far from echo the artistic complexities that such fans would expect. Violet may be a little muddled. It may not be entirely clear how they wish to set themselves apart from their influences or contemporaries. What is certain, however, is that they have created a record that is a welcome addition to the caucus of that curious alt-rock/post-rock/ambient-electro movement that has been gathering steam worldwide since Thom Yorke first cited an Icelandic influence. A little underdone conceptually, Violet may be treading the same ground as its higher-profile influences, but whether groundbreaking or not, it is a satisfying, enjoyable listening experience from a band with a very promising future. - Wireless Bollinger |
1XLP/Out Of Print