Jeremy Aaron
10/30/09, 03:57 PM
No Age - Losing Feeling
Record Label: Sub Pop
Release Date: October 5, 2009
Everyone probably has one of those bands or albums that, for one reason or another, just didn't click with him or her right away, but upon revisiting later, made a completely different impression. For me, No Age stands out as such a band; perhaps I just lacked the necessary context, but an album like Weirdo Rippers seemed like little more than a mish-mash of distorted noise. Well, it actually still seems somewhat like that, but some of the songs have a well-disguised pop element, and this would become even more evident on 2008's Nouns. Though I can recognize what those records tried to accomplish and appreciate their freshness, I remain a little skeptical of all the praise heaped upon them, however. Despite their relative uniqueness, I wonder how many people actually spin them regularly out of sheer enjoyment.
No Age's latest EP seems almost aimed directly at the band's still dubious detractors. If you're a big supporter of Nouns, Losing Feeling might seem a little safe, but if you think the No Age catalog thus far sounds like listening to a staticky television while going all Electriclarryland on yourself, this latest release might actually sound like music. In fact, three of the EP's four tracks are truly recognizable as "songs" with conventional structures. The opening title track blunts the band's usual jagged stabs with guitars that shimmer with an almost post-rock grace, but retains the lively percussion and thin layer of noise that would make it recognizable as No Age. "Genie" is the standout on the set, resembling the quirky, lo-fi pop of Pavement.
The disc's black sheep is "Aim at the Airport," a calming ambient instrumental of droning guitar over the sound of ocean waves. Through the first three tracks, there's been precious little of No Age's usual aggression, but it comes out on the closer "You're a Target," with Randy Randall's driving guitar pulse and Dean Spunt's rapid-fire rhythms awash in a blissful haze. It's not too hazy, though-- if anything, Losing Feeling marks No Age as a band that's not just for stodgy indie critics and lo-fi connoisseurs anymore. Evidence of legitimate pop sensibility is sparse on the band's first two albums, but it's surprisingly prominent here. If No Age's knotty and often manic compositions have eluded you thus far, don't let that make you take a pass on Losing Feeling. It will offer a fresh perspective on an already interesting band.
No Age's Nouns
Wavves' Wavvves
Pavement's Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
Times New Viking's Rip It Off
Superchunk's Leaves in the Gutter
1. Losing Feeling (3:55)
2. Genie (3:25)
3. Aim at the Airport (3:17)
4. You're a Target (3:22)
Record Label: Sub Pop
Release Date: October 5, 2009
Everyone probably has one of those bands or albums that, for one reason or another, just didn't click with him or her right away, but upon revisiting later, made a completely different impression. For me, No Age stands out as such a band; perhaps I just lacked the necessary context, but an album like Weirdo Rippers seemed like little more than a mish-mash of distorted noise. Well, it actually still seems somewhat like that, but some of the songs have a well-disguised pop element, and this would become even more evident on 2008's Nouns. Though I can recognize what those records tried to accomplish and appreciate their freshness, I remain a little skeptical of all the praise heaped upon them, however. Despite their relative uniqueness, I wonder how many people actually spin them regularly out of sheer enjoyment.
No Age's latest EP seems almost aimed directly at the band's still dubious detractors. If you're a big supporter of Nouns, Losing Feeling might seem a little safe, but if you think the No Age catalog thus far sounds like listening to a staticky television while going all Electriclarryland on yourself, this latest release might actually sound like music. In fact, three of the EP's four tracks are truly recognizable as "songs" with conventional structures. The opening title track blunts the band's usual jagged stabs with guitars that shimmer with an almost post-rock grace, but retains the lively percussion and thin layer of noise that would make it recognizable as No Age. "Genie" is the standout on the set, resembling the quirky, lo-fi pop of Pavement.
The disc's black sheep is "Aim at the Airport," a calming ambient instrumental of droning guitar over the sound of ocean waves. Through the first three tracks, there's been precious little of No Age's usual aggression, but it comes out on the closer "You're a Target," with Randy Randall's driving guitar pulse and Dean Spunt's rapid-fire rhythms awash in a blissful haze. It's not too hazy, though-- if anything, Losing Feeling marks No Age as a band that's not just for stodgy indie critics and lo-fi connoisseurs anymore. Evidence of legitimate pop sensibility is sparse on the band's first two albums, but it's surprisingly prominent here. If No Age's knotty and often manic compositions have eluded you thus far, don't let that make you take a pass on Losing Feeling. It will offer a fresh perspective on an already interesting band.
No Age's Nouns
Wavves' Wavvves
Pavement's Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
Times New Viking's Rip It Off
Superchunk's Leaves in the Gutter
1. Losing Feeling (3:55)
2. Genie (3:25)
3. Aim at the Airport (3:17)
4. You're a Target (3:22)