Bathtub Music
Can we just agree to give in to the current obsession with reverb? Paul Duncan and Oliver Chapoy of Warm Ghost make it a little easier with their EP Uncut Diamond.
Opening with just enough Brian Wilson-esque melodies, “Open the Wormhole in Your Heart” showcases why we love Baths, Animal Collective and other digital productions with dream pop sensibilities.
“Without a Dancer” and “Claws Overheard” are perfect examples of what happens when you put more emphasis on texture over potential remix hits. They’re the right combination of Morrisey’s sense of drowsy broodiness, glitchy/beepy East Coast beats, and, what the heck, a couple handfuls of Ambien to chill everyone out.
“Resignation Rights” is what happens when the Ambien thing was probably overkill and everything Duncan sings sounds like it was recorded in a bathroom travelling through space; this is a good thing. Almost creeping towards M83 if all they played were grandfather clocks, the duo really takes the concept of airy, ambient music to a different level.
Uncut Diamond ends with “Let My Angst Unfold in the Water Like a Hounds Tongue” – keeping the fine tradition of post-rock groups naming their songs with novel-length titles. Despite this, the “world beat” quality and 80s drums make this worthy of being hidden track on your Phil Collins Summer Mix. Warm Ghost are sitting firmly on the heels of the scene’s modern shoegazing era with something surprisingly substantial.
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