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07/09/08, 07:01 PM
Mute Math - Mute Math
Record Label: Teleprompt / Warner Bros. Records
Release Date: January 19, 2008 (US); September 26, 2006 (reissue)
Though it's wrong to judge a book by its cover, sometimes album art can make or break a purchase. Without it, Mute Math’s self-titled debut may have passed me by and continued to sit on a Nashville record store shelf two years ago. Being a relatively unknown band, at least to my ears, their interesting cover artwork of the four band members, with lights in place of their faces was the only thing to pique my interest. I bought it, and it didn't take me long to realize their CD cover reflected their beautiful sounds perfectly.
From start to finish, Mute Math’s gorgeous release experiments with detail. From the looping drum line on instrumental opener “Collapse” to vocalist/keyboardist Paul Meany’s keyboards on “Chaos”; from “Typical,” a standout pop song embedded with crashing drums and reminiscent of U2 to “Picture,” sounding transcendent in its programming. Every track contains something different.
With swirling guitars, keytars and an Atari, every song possesses a complex depth. Although its depth is mostly limited to its ambient instrumentals, Mute Math’s lyrics do not affect them. Meany’s vocals, similar to Sting’s, carry through each song beautifully. While some of their lyrics seem lackluster on paper (“I picture you and me, always”; “Only tears know how to remind us we all break the same”), they sound poetic floating through each 4-5 minute symphony.
Though the disc slows down as it finishes, it never becomes an issue. With serious programming and their use of the Atari in the closing “Reset,” the quartet shows off some of its finest production in the disc’s latter half. However, “You Are Mine” may be the only cause for complaint; the almost five-minute song and its chorus, “You are mine, you are mine, you are mine, all mine” becomes redundant.
Mute Math is an indie staple. With excellent vocals, breath-taking production, and a lasting value, their debut is a work of art. The band’s electrifying live show, coupled with the release of their second album hopefully sometime this year, Mute Math’s already extensive fan base should broaden in no time.
Sting, mind-blowing instrumentals
myspace.com/mutemath (http://www.myspace.com/mutemath)
Record Label: Teleprompt / Warner Bros. Records
Release Date: January 19, 2008 (US); September 26, 2006 (reissue)
Though it's wrong to judge a book by its cover, sometimes album art can make or break a purchase. Without it, Mute Math’s self-titled debut may have passed me by and continued to sit on a Nashville record store shelf two years ago. Being a relatively unknown band, at least to my ears, their interesting cover artwork of the four band members, with lights in place of their faces was the only thing to pique my interest. I bought it, and it didn't take me long to realize their CD cover reflected their beautiful sounds perfectly.
From start to finish, Mute Math’s gorgeous release experiments with detail. From the looping drum line on instrumental opener “Collapse” to vocalist/keyboardist Paul Meany’s keyboards on “Chaos”; from “Typical,” a standout pop song embedded with crashing drums and reminiscent of U2 to “Picture,” sounding transcendent in its programming. Every track contains something different.
With swirling guitars, keytars and an Atari, every song possesses a complex depth. Although its depth is mostly limited to its ambient instrumentals, Mute Math’s lyrics do not affect them. Meany’s vocals, similar to Sting’s, carry through each song beautifully. While some of their lyrics seem lackluster on paper (“I picture you and me, always”; “Only tears know how to remind us we all break the same”), they sound poetic floating through each 4-5 minute symphony.
Though the disc slows down as it finishes, it never becomes an issue. With serious programming and their use of the Atari in the closing “Reset,” the quartet shows off some of its finest production in the disc’s latter half. However, “You Are Mine” may be the only cause for complaint; the almost five-minute song and its chorus, “You are mine, you are mine, you are mine, all mine” becomes redundant.
Mute Math is an indie staple. With excellent vocals, breath-taking production, and a lasting value, their debut is a work of art. The band’s electrifying live show, coupled with the release of their second album hopefully sometime this year, Mute Math’s already extensive fan base should broaden in no time.
Sting, mind-blowing instrumentals
myspace.com/mutemath (http://www.myspace.com/mutemath)