-=- SHGZ -=- * Shoegaze * Indie * Post-Rock * Grunge * Dream Pop * Psych-Rock * Ethereal * ARTIST..: Triptides ALBUM...: Visitors GENRE...: Psychedelic Rock STYLE...: Psych Pop, Indie Pop, Folk Rock YEAR....: 2018 LABEL...: Requiem Pour Un Twister ENCODER.: LAME 3.100 -V0 BITRATE.: 246 kbps avg QUALITY.: 44.1kHz / Joint Stereo SOURCE..: CD TRACKS..: 12 SIZE....: 91.69 MB URL..: http://www.facebook.com/Triptides/ - TRACKLIST 1 All My Life 3:17 2 When Will I See You Again 2:19 3 Visitors 3:51 4 Flashing Before Your Eyes 2:46 5 Heavy Cloud 4:10 6 Sunday In The Park 5:58 7 Saturday Far Away 4:02 8 The Illusion 2:54 9 Mary Anne 4:21 10 My Friend 5:38 11 Strange Love 6:46 12 Child Of God 5:48 Total Playtime: 51:50 Triptides is a psychedelic rock band from Los Angeles, California. * I was watching Tronùnot the regrettable 2010 reboot, but the originalùwhile listening to this album. Visitors happened to be the perfect soundtrack for those 1982 acid trips and the resulting illuminated cyber cityscapes, the anthropomorphized computer programs and the bizarre narrative constructions. Tron, if examined as a philosophical treatise, is essentially wrestling with the notions of humanity and connection (as well as personal fulfillment) in a world increasingly dominated by distraction. On Visitors, their fifth album, Triptides also contemplate this distressing predicament, as a persistent droning rhythm anchors layered vocals in a haze of powerful fuzz guitar and cavernous organ riffs. The title tune seems to suggest a distance from others and worst, the self. The album as a whole is an assessment of how and what meaning is for an individual and the process by which one goes about creating meaning for and by themselvesùan entirely subjective process to be sure. The album seems to be an expansive expedition into the under current of late sixties. It recalls the melodic tendencies of Motherlode seasoned with the psyche-funky-soul-a-delic act Archie Whitewater's storytelling ability. "Saturday Far Away" is reminiscent of Brenton Wood, if he ever tried to add mind-altering substances to his soul songs. If Triptides have any contemporaries, the closest might be the Stepkids. But even then, there are a fewùmany?ùdegrees of distance in the comparison. It's easy to fall victim to psych rock clichTs, yet Triptides manage to avoid such missteps. It kinda evokes the feeling of psychedelia in a digital age, while also rejecting simple genre conformityùVisitors abandons the sun-drenched vibe of yesterday, in favor of a tension that is understated yet palpable nonetheless. Psychedelia has always had an elusive quality to it, but the more successful of these types of bands offer a kind of accessibility. Put simply, Triptides invite you to take the trip with themùor to at least stop by for a short visit. * 2018's Visitors is Triptides sixth album, and the L.A.-by-way-of-Indiana band exhibits no discernable drop in quality, delivering another gloriously trippy slice of bedroom psych-pop. The duo of Glenn Brigman and Josh Menashe hold true to their vision of re-creating the swirling sounds of late-'60s U.K. groups like Tomorrow and Pink Floyd, while keeping the whimsy on a low boil. Instead, there's a rock-hard toughness under the jangling 12-string guitars, biting six-strings, and wistful voices that gives the album a kick and provides a very solid foundation from which to launch their tuneful flights of fancy. And the songs are quite fanciful, whether the band is in full daydream mode like on "Saturday Far Away" or "My Friend," rollicking gently as on "All My Life," or kicking up paisley swirls on rockers like "Mary Anne," their melodies are sticky sweet and the hooks are sharp. This album seems a little more cleaned up than some of their earlier work, but they still show a mastery at crafting echoing, atmospheric sounds that complement their tunes perfectly. The new twist to their approach brings the band a step or two out of the bedroom and lends an air of professionalism to the record. It's not far from the sound bands like Plasticland or the Rain Parade had in the '80s, and that's high praise. Those bands conjured up the sounds of their psychedelic heroes without sounding like slavish imitators, they used modern recording techniques wisely, and they got a full, rich sound most bands in the '60s couldn't come close to. Triptides do all those things too, and against the odds, they keep getting better. Visitors is their best-sounding record to date and anyone with even a passing interest in psych-pop should start here, then work back through the rest of the band's impressive catalog. -=- SHGZ -=- P.S. ** Thanks *** *** BCC FNT IPC SSR *** *** For Knowing Where The Music Is At *** *** Props to CaHeSo, awesome Asian Indie/Shoegaze *** *** And to FANG/HOUND for supporting all the Indie lovers out there *** --===-- ********************* * NuHS we miss you! * *********************