Love/Venice recently dropped from Danish, Copenhagen-based lo-fi group Slaughter Beach (note, not to be confused with Philadelphia’s Slaughter Beach, Dog). Two years out from its first single, the spacey, synth-riddled surf rock group shows definite growth. Two qualities of this EP make it worth listening to: the dreamy melodies and adept lyricism. These alone, demonstrated on Love/Venice, give Slaughter Beach the ability to break out of the underground.
The album opens up with “Clear Insight,” which has a popping, electronic beat ushering in a clean sliding guitar against the backdrop of atmospheric synth. Listeners should take note of the break in beat here that adds emphasis to the vocal’s whine; this becomes especially prevalent with the move from break-down to build-up structure in the EP’s second track, “Introvert.” “Introvert” is perhaps the most heartfelt of these tracks, with a chorus repeating the line “I know you want to be alone.” In two songs, Slaughter Beach proves itself worthy of radio-space. To continue, “Made-Up True Love” is more spacey and traditional dream-rock with a hint of production magic. This leads into a slower, underwhelming track, “Nuked.” It feels like a Jesus and Mary Chain b-side cover. The EP ends on a high note, however, with “Spinning Globe,” where that spaced out feeling carried on from “Made-Up True Love” is much more organized (and packaged nicely for single material).
Slaughter Beach delivers in a way that many other bands cannot. There is so much room for error in the genre that often sees bands walking a thin line between synth wizard and white noise. Thankfully, Slaughter Beach is one band that defies that line, and should be placed on your “to watch” list for the upcoming years.
Recommended Tracks: 1 (ClearInsight), 2 (Introvert), 5 (Spinning Globe)
Recommended if You Like: Jesus and Mary Chain, Built to Spill, Radio Dept.
Do Not Play: None
Written by Dylan Fox on 12/08/15