when i finally get time to sit down and write my memoirs, i plan on having two volumes: the first will be “the life and times of ct verses before them airs” and the second will be “how them airs blew my mind: the ct verses story.” so i may be a little hyperbolic here, but them airs’ new album, echo park bomb city, is simply fantastic. this is a record that i can’t wait to recommend to people. it’s fun. it’s weird. and it’s never, ever boring.
i encourage you to check it out, and you can do that on spotify or (preferably) on bandcamp. at the time of writing, them airs has left echo park bomb city up on a “pay what you want” scale, so take advantage of that before they realize their mistake! if you’re not familiar with them airs, they used to be called ‘mirror waves’, and their record is something of a reboot; a solidification of their sound and identity. modern post-punk (cf. drahla) meets noise meets dance.
here are my 3 favorite moments:
“zachary“. them airs gives you no false impression of what you are in for with their opening track. strange, surreal, and dancey, the song comes closest the band gets to guerilla toss (a dear influence) while maintaining their own clear individuality. while i loved the early single “tunxis valley”, i knew i was going to love this record as early as 0:13, when the lyric “i’m going to the west coast / i’m going to see the hoover dam and all its furnishings” is delivered in deadpan. the lyrics get more absurd (and dangerous) as the song progresses, and it’s a confident, bizarre, and lovely track to kick off an album with.
“dreamt of a house“. all right, so this is my favorite track on echo park bomb city. and part of the reason this song is my favorite is its placement in the tracklist. coming off the heels of the moody (and spoken-word recording) “Lot 2 Parking Guide”, it carries a darker mood than anything else on the album before it. is just bass? or is there a synth plugging away as well? the springy guitar line keeps it from feeling too heavy, which gives it a delightfully uneasy feeling. and then the song pretty much stops and starts over, completely different but carrying the same mood and tone.
“ten-go“. there’s a lot going on in this track that i love, but if i had to identify a specific “moment”, it’d be the first blast of white-noise distortion. it’s metallic, abrasive, and loud. as sound smashes over and over, it lasts a little longer than you might expect, causing you to wonder if the (probably digital) file is somehow skipping. what i love about it is not only how much of an interruption it initially is, but how the song continually uses it as its own refrain. it’s a cool, and really bold, move.
and that song gives way to the ethereal and strangely beautiful “calving”. i’d talk about that too, but i’m limiting myself to three highlights and shutting up now so that you can just go listen to it yourself.
listen/buy the album here or below.
