Regaining Footing
Washington D.C.-based post-punk band Flasher has recently reinvented itself with the June 17th album release, Love is Yours. Flasher has had some bumps along the way, losing bassist Daniel Saperstein from the band’s lineup in 2019. Struggling to find their own voice, Emma Baker and Taylor Mulitz had to reinvent their sound and their message. Baker took center stage with a prominent hook in the single “I Saw You,” while also putting more time into developing her role as lead drummer. Love is Yours was recorded in the summer of 2020 in Washington D.C. with the help of their producer, friend and multi-instrumental collaborator, Owen Wuerker.
The album starts off with a classical distortion type entry in “I Saw You.” Baker and Mulitz’s voices interlay in between reverbed heavy guitar complexity. The vocals are drawn out and sometimes covered by instrumentals, but with multiple listens they are easier to discern. “And how could it be/The sun is all that moves me/Relentlessly/Pushing toward oblivion/Do I sound sincere?/Do I make myself clear?”
Titular track “Love is Yours” is funky, spunky and upbeat. The perfect ballad for a quick groove, this song incorporates bass, guitar, drums (obviously) and a bit of subtle electronic bliss. Moving forward in the album, “Spell It Out” is playful and sincere all at once. This short, yet complex, 56-second instrumental track showcases the band member’s ability to play off of each other outside of just vocal capacities.
The fourth song on the track, “Nothing” begins with a guitar. The song structure is a mix between R.E.M.’s best singles, Beck, and The Innocence Mission’s “Bright as Yellow.” The drums are more prominent on this track, setting up the main harmonizing beat on which the instrumentals and bass are built.
Love is Yours is lyrically engaged, funny and witty. Instrumentally, it is complex and reminiscent of ‘90s gems and post-punk funnies. Fans of modern-indie rock will find electronic elements they’ve maybe come to hear previously, but with a grungier twist. Flasher may have lost its footing with the loss of Daniel Saperstein, but they quickly found it once again—only this time with a more mellow, unique sound.
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