Music Reviews

Houston

Overhead

SBR

What is this? Hardcore math rock? post-emo? Shoeshine scrunge pop? There’s a little note that comes with the CD that tells you to listen to the CD twice, and I know it would probably be a better thing if I did… but right now I just don’t have time, dammit! First impressions are confusing. Good, but confusing. Frontal lobe throbbing indie rock crush, like a car crash. It hits you when you relax into the song. Swervedriver loud at times, but with an off-kilter Jets to Brazil slant, and maybe Jesus Lizard rawness… perhaps. Harsh dynamics that take you down to a whisper and up to a scream, but it’s that empowering scream… the one that makes you go, “Yeahhhh!”

Outside of those moments, there’s everything from extremely solid and well-written songs, full of dissonant yet pop driven hooks, to strange sounds comprised of heavy breathing and handclaps, or cheesy synth sounds that make you regret hearing too much music when you didn’t know enough about music to filter out the worst parts of the Seventies. Some of it grows on you though, sounding a bit like twisted prog rock with an edge. Edge of what? I don’t know… listen to it again.

SBR, 3010 Hennepin Ave S., PMB 667, Minneapolis, MN 55408; http://www.onesimpleband.com


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