This album starts off with "3WW", and right from the intro of this one I love the very bass heavy and sort of dark atmosphere on this one. Not to mention, between the atmosphere and the very tight guitar notes and the unsettling synths, this is certainly a very untapped sound for Alt-J. At first, I didn't really care for how drawn out the intro is here, but it's certainly grown on me. It helps this already very hulking atmosphere become even bigger. Then we have the vocals here, which are easily some of the most digestible I've seen from Alt-J. And this goes for all the vocals, from the smoother ones here to some of the quirkier ones as well. Plus, these harmonies between Alt-J give "3WW" a very epic feel. Lyrically, this is a whole lot of what you would usually expect to hear from this trio. But at this point, if there wasn't visceral images among this very "Digital Loneliness" vibe, I don't think this would work nearly as well as it does. Then we also have these female vocals here, which come off really nicely, and answer the cries of "I just want to love you in my own language" rather nicely. It's a great intro. Up next we have "In Cold Blood" which is much more of a straightforward sound for Alt-J. I mean this could have EASILY landed on their last album nicely, but it's a refreshing sound for this album and I love to hear it. Now, I've heard complaints about this from a lot of people about this one, claiming that Alt-J are trying desperately to be themselves here. Honestly, I don't think that's the case. But I do think that this one is Alt-J doing what they do best. The resulting track is one of the strongest I've heard from Alt-J in a VERY long time. I love the HUGE sound of the hook on this one and the sort of swagger that comes with the big sounding horn section. While this is still very left of the dial and bizarre, for new Alt-J listeners, this may be the place to start. Up next is their cover of "House of the Rising Sun", which continues on with the very haunting and dark sound of the rest of the album. However, it also remains serene in an Alt-J sort of way. This is probably the most Folk-Inspired track I've heard from them in awhile, and it does work for the most part. I actually really dig the vocals here, and the way they very delicately handle this cover. Things do seem to fall apart slightly after the first verse, but overall this isn't horrible, and it certainly fits the vibe of the album. The only thing seriously holding me back from loving this version of "House of the Rising Sun", is the fact that I feel like there should have been more of a release here or a more epic climax. It never really comes to that, and it just becomes a little stagnant. Outside of that though, this is a solid cover, and like I said, it really has that very dangerous and much more sinister tone that I continue to love. Alt-J up next take us in a much funkier direction with "Hit Me Like That Snare". As weird as a band that Alt-J are, I love when they incorporate more digestible elements into their music. In this case, it's that seriously funky riff that reminds me of some of the material from their last album. But let's talk about how chaotic and twisted this continues to come off. The synths here are seriously unnerving, not to mention I love the very tortured vocal performance on this one. This took such a hard left turn after how serene that last track was. The drums here are intense, and the atmosphere continues to be an unnerving mix of all of these bizarre instrumentals. Not to mention, it all just unravels right into this sort of cult like vocal breakdown in the closing moments.
Alt-J get right back to this very hulking atmosphere with the brilliant "Deadcrush". I can't stress enough how amazing these very bass heavy tracks have been hitting perfectly for Alt-J, it's seriously been driving home these very BIG atmospheres. I love how haunting this one is between the very suffocating atmosphere and the ghoulish background vocals drenched in effects, including a weird sample that almost sounds like James Brown in the background. I would be honestly beyond happy to hear more tracks like this in the future. "Deadcrush" is totally bizarre, but in Alt-J's own way, it's seriously soulful and funky, what a great track. "Adeline" is up next, and it shows Alt-J traveling back to the folkier side of things. But once again, I do really like the atmosphere here quite a bit. But sadly, I also feel like once again this could have used a little more buildup and a release. Hell, I almost feel like this track demanded it. But for another sort of dark, very atmospheric folk track, this is far from bad. But for "Adeline", I'm a whole lot more interested in some of the synths and vocal harmonies going on in the background, not to mention the strings are a really nice touch. And there's certainly a whole lot of buildup here, I just wish it went somewhere BIGGER than the half assed release we get. But like I said, the drums are intense, the strings are beautiful, and there are tons of good elements here. Up until this point, this album has been smooth. But Alt-J sort of drop the ball with their last few tracks. From the intro of "Last Year", this is everything I don't want to hear from these guys. This one takes it back to the folkier sound we heard earlier. But I don't know, I feel like they really had something earlier with the much darker folk tracks. Because this one seriously has like, no meat to it whatsoever. The very hollow sounding atmosphere really doesn't do anything for me. And remember when I said earlier that I didn't understand how people were saying Alt-J were trying too hard to be themselves? Well here, I totally feel the same way as those people. On "Last Year", I seriously feel like they threw in a bunch of seriously weird moments just to cater to their fans, and the result really isn't that good at all. Then we have this album's finale, "Pleader", and once again I feel like they're trying just a little bit too hard. Earlier I couldn't get enough of some of these very twisted atmospheres. But they seamed to weave in and out of Alt-J's music so wonderfully and seamlessly. "Pleader" sounds like Alt-J is covering some rejected music from a cheesy slasher movie, just to cater to the atmosphere of this album. When the vocals come in, I would say things do pick up. But this track just can't stay away from heading back to it's lackluster main riff. And it's a shame, because some of the later moments here ARE seriously twisted. I feel like Alt-J did drop the ball with these last few tracks, but overall it's still a good album.
Rating : 7.6/10
Give A Listen To: “3WW”, “In Cold Blood”, “Hit Me Like That Snare”, “Deadcrush”
Overall Thoughts: While this certainly isn't a bad album, I have to say I expected a little more from it. The tracks here that are good are seriously some of the best Alt-J tracks I've ever heard, and I love the very dark and looming production. But, this thing is only 8 tracks long and only about 40 minutes, making it by far the band's shortest. Not to mention, the last few tracks here kinda missed the mark. Still, Alt-J remain one of Indie's freshest and most interesting bands.
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