There Is No Year

Radical post-punk; third album from one of the most audacious and interesting rock bands going. It feels like they're aiming for concision and more consistent "pop" leanings, more urgency and fewer stylistic deviations. The vibe skews eighties action film soundtrack, with lots of danceable beats and piano. I still prefer their first album, which reaches higher highs, but this is a strong set of songs nevertheless. Especially well suited to anyone on team Bernie Sanders. Favorites: 2, 6, 7, 11. No FCCs detected.

1. (3:15)—Fast, darkwave-inflected, lends itself well to handclaps. Reminds me of El Columpio Asesino.
2. *(4:16)—The big song, the single. Medium-slow anthem, strong and heavy on the piano. Great group vocals courtesy of Mourning [A] BLKstar.
3. (4:26)—Medium-slow, kind of like the previous track but noisier and more brooding.
4. (3:44)—Slow, more minimal and restrained.
5. (3:06)—Krautrock beat, vocals reminiscent of sixties Motown.
6. *(3:53)—Mid-tempo, very new wave and early hip-hop, very danceable, great noisy sax solo. Sounds a lot like the similarly powerful Russian band Shortparis.
7. *(4:11)—Slow, ominous, with very few elements, other than a deep pulse, until the intense final minute.
8. (3:02)—Mid-tempo. Chugging beat, retro horror movie feel.
9. (3:25)—Mid-tempo, ghostly, melodic post-punk.
10. (4:01)—Slow, cavernous, melancholy, dramatic. Silence at -0:20.
11. *(2:55)—Hardcore punk! Noise blasts! "Got to find a way to get out of it, out of it!"