Highway Hypnosis

Danny Danger
Reviewed 02/18/2019

Artist: Sneaks
Album: Highway Hypnosis

Highway Hypnosis is the fourth album from the Washington, D.C. based minimalist musician, Sneaks. Merging ghostly indie pop and spaced out hip-hop, Sneaks finds the middle ground which seems strangely enough to be the DIY punk scene. She adds her repetitive spoken-word vocals plus chanting over a bed of lo-fi bass, drum machine, and minimal keyboards.

Related Artists: Vagabon, Superorganism, Sleaford Mods, Priests, Chastity Belt
FCC: none – album’s clean version
Reviewer Favorites: 2, 8

1. Highway Hypnosis (1:56) – repetitive whispering of “highway hypnosis,” sharp background beat, faint singing fades in and out over other sounds, alternatively meditative
2. The Way It Goes (2:48) – midtempo cartoony action-scene sound merged with strong low-fi beats, repetitive lyrics, bounce background with wavy feel, chanting over absence of music for last 30ish seconds
3. Ecstasy (2:23) – space-y/other worldly singing, strong background percussion, DJ soundboard usage, musical beeps over harmonizing
4. Suck It Like a Whistle (2:33) – soft intro that gradually gets louder, electronic beats, staccato sound, transitions into silence
5. Addis (1:38) – sounds like a broom hitting the floor and animated clanging pots over low-fi beats, auto-tuned singing, laughing, transitions into silence, wavy feel
6. Saiditzoneza (1:40) – low-fi beats, random static or altered breathing, female chanting, hip hop beat
7. Money Don’t Grown on Trees (2:12) – top 40 intro that transitions into staccato beat, snapping, soft singing, midtempo, transitions into new sound with about 30 seconds left – sounds like a forelorn wind whistle
8. Cinnamon (2:27) – electronic low-fi bouncy beat, fluid midtempo song, clear usage of DJ soundboard, slow but peppy vibe, multiple people singing/talking
9. Holy Cow Never Saw a Girl Like Her (0:55) – midtempo, deep electronic bass repetitive refrain, repetitive lyrics, transitions into silence
10. Beliefs (2:48) – sounds of a sci-fi science lab (lasers, keypad tapping), hollow feel, repetitive lyrics, transitions into dissonant piano playing and then into deep bass beats
11. And We’re Off (2:14) – deep electronic bass turns into punk rock sound, drums percussion in the background, with soft hollow singing overlaid, slow to midtempo
12. A Lil Close (2:25) – staccato beats laid over other staccato beats, soft repetitive singing, alternative feel, guitar (?)
13. Hong Kong to Amsterdam (2:53) – hollow beat sound almost like a tennis ball hitting the wall, speaking singing that is heavily influenced by the beat behind it, electronic album scratching, K-Pop meets Prince over whisper lyrics