Academy of Staring Daggers Release an Addictive EP
The new release from Academy of Staring Daggers delivers a unique and somewhat vintage-toned approach by blending soundscapes that feel like they were taken from mid-'70s TV shows or films with rock tonalities that border on surf but also hit a garage rock feel.
The Sleep EP is riddled with classic keys, muffled spoken word that sounds like vintage samples, and amazing guitar work, along with live drums and more, all just filling this atmosphere with a strange and almost eerie nostalgia.
I love the garage pop and rock undertone that lives beneath the surface of a lot of these songs. The guitar work is everything here. These guitars don't just add drive to the songs, instead, they deliver layers of thickness and add to the vaster atmospheres that the songs build themselves.
What's cool about this record is that it sounds almost like it's all performed live. It has a weird way of putting you right there in the moment, and it's something that I think works super well for the aesthetic of the entire record.
This is an outside-the-box, cinematic, and art-rock project that blends in these pop elements from different decades and creates something very unique but also strangely addictive.
The record is filled with color, but it also has a little haunt to it in its own right. Although it comes with a sort of bubbly undertone at times, that edginess is almost always there.
My favorite track on this record is called "The Doppelganger", which is a track that shows the experimentation of guitar work and gives a perfect example of how they border on this beautifully woven surf rock soundscape and then blend that into an edgier, more fuzz tone sound towards the end.
You can hear this garage punk thriving throughout the record, and it gives certain tracks an attitude.
There are plenty of surprises around the corners of this release, but it is woven by the staple elements that make it sound, as I mentioned earlier, vintage, and aesthetically it's gorgeous simply because they nail that feeling so well you can taste it.
This EP manages to string together a slew of influences. You get not only an experimental approach, but a psychedelic rock underbelly that serves a cinematic landscape. It's outstanding how all the elements come together like puzzle pieces and create this engulfing experience for the listener.
It's got a smoothness to it and the performances. There's a very chill sort of attitude, and that sticks, at times, even when the guitars come in and get heavier and more fuzzy.
It's the attitude. It's the swagger and sort of vibe it all gives off that gives it character and personality.
That is one of the strongest aspects that sticks throughout the course of the full release, and I think it's important to have that and release like this because when you listen to the EP from beginning to end, you get a great experience from it.
You can't always say that.
With this record, you're definitely getting this unique and avant-garde experience that takes you on a bit of a musical journey through sets of songs that go through moods, and I love that about this record.
When you listen to the whole thing, you have to snap yourself back to reality again when it's all over.
You can't really ask for much more than that.
I suggest diving into this record with headphones on and taking a deep listen because there's a lot of spoken word stuff going on, and although that element of the music is sort of distorted at times, you can still pick up on a lot of the things that are going on.
For me, the spoken word aspect was just part of the musical experience itself and the aesthetic that's delivered.
It added to the late-night 1970s old-school TV aspect of the music.
Most definitely check this out and experience it for yourself.
