Walter Schreifels and a Long Awaited Reunion
22 years is a long time. For most bands, 22 years is a time frame where releasing new music seems out of the realm of possibility. Even with all of the money in the world, Johnny Marr and Morrissey would rather not. So what brings a group like Quicksand back? One of the most influential ’90s post-hardcore bands shouldn’t have anything to prove to anybody — especially when you consider the track record of frontman Walter Schreifels, being in groups such as Youth of Today and Gorilla Biscuits. And even with the adversity that comes with combatting schedules and the arrest of guitarist Tom Capone, Quicksand continued to release their newest record, the first one in over two decades, Interiors.
Producer, Will Yip is the perfect piece of the puzzle to bring this thing together. With some of the most popular indie rock and emo releases of the five years under his belt such as Turnover’s Peripheral Vision and Title Fight’s Floral Green, anyone can tell just by looking at his resume that Yip would have a spot in his heart for Quicksand.
The album starts with “Illuminant” which has a deep and raspy guitar riff that shadows Royal Blood in its almost bass guitar qualities in the main riff. This track also shows the ultimate change of sound that Quicksand has undergone over time, with a more polished production sound, but sticking to the roots that Quicksand has implanted. “Under The Screw” has almost a Hawaii 5-0 sort of drumline, that is in the case that The Ventures listened to a lot of Sunny Day Real Estate. The vocals of Schreifels are very early ’00s alternative rock, much more mature compared to his previous works.
“>” and “>>” are instrumental tracks that flow perfectly with the tempo the album sets, slowing it down after fast paced songs for a comedown back to reality. “>” is as shoegaze as Quicksand is ever going to get, really showing that Will Yip, Good Nature quality.
Interiors has a quiet grungy aspect to it. Even at its most hardcore, it has a relaxed and quiet feel to it, with its closest relative being a band like Failure. This quality is shown most on “Interiors,” a track that is heavy-sounding in instrumentals, yet slowed down with the somber vocals of Schreifels. “Hyperion” has the shoegaze aspects of “>” in dream-pop style chords mixed with riffing with echoes that are emphasized even later with a solo. This track is the noisiest when it counts, but the basic verses are generic repeating the same basic chord as Schreifels sings.
The closing track “Normal Love” shows the great bass guitar work happening on Interiors as Sergio Vega is able to isolate his deep-toned bass riffs for great additions to tracks that sometimes appear to blend in.
Overall, Interiors shows maturing musicians in Quicksand. The sound is different but the roots of the group are still there. It is not Schreifels other projects and the hardcore aspects are toned down for a relaxed alternative sound.
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