Written by Brandon George
The thrashing auxiliary percussion, the blaring synths and the quiet “Skins” sample are as effective a tone-setter as any on Beatricks’ debut album “Razzle Frazzle." For much of its first half, the album calls to mind the whimsy of 90s video game soundtracks, culminating into emotional denouements with rousing gang vocals.
Throughout the first three tracks, the vocals dance in unison with twirling synth melodies, all while offering passionate cries like, “I don’t think you have a clue / I adore you” on “Blueberry Pomegranate.” It’s this continual blending of charm and complex emotion that makes the album so gripping.
“Reality Surf” foreshadows a tonal shift for the album. It comes in to invoke the energy of early 2000s R&B and Emo.
Underlying, rhythmic vocal pads give shape to the simple, driving electronic hi-hat and octave-doubled primary melodies. After the unrestrained sonic bliss of the first three tracks, it’s an intriguing change.
“Where Did Everybody Go Go Go” hits like a breeze block. It’s a shift that at first seems sudden, but on repeated listens acts as the logical continuation of “Reality Surf.”
Where the opening tracks of the record are electronic, “Where Did Everybody Go Go Go” is a guitar-driven garage banger. The halfway point of the song kicks into double time, the riff now replaced with jangling chords and the vocals now replaced with a spiraling solo.
“Contract” carries on with this new conceit. The opening riff and its accompanying polyrhythmic drum beat have an explosive excitement to them.
It’s also where the album’s second guitar solo is. Moments that are often anathema to the flow of a song only serve to keep the energy going: louder, more vibrant, more engrossing. The song finally peters out with a dwindling outro, signalling another change in the record’s journey.
“We’re An Unstoppable Force” acts as a comedown from the heightened full-band intensity of the two previous songs. It also acts as a victorious namesake. Sonically one of the quietest songs on the album, it feels instead gargantuan.
Plinking synths dance around a pounding acoustic guitar. Halfway through the song, Beatricks’ vocals waft in from the depths of the mix, repeating the desperate shout, “All I want is for someone to tell me I will be alright / All I want is for someone to tell me it will be okay.”
“Love Songs From,” and “Sand Coffin,” with the sounds of their warbling melodica and unison vocal lines, call to mind the drunken bliss of a shanty. They sway, comfortably, back and forth in a lazy 6/8 signature that lends to their hypnotic and communal vibes.
Despite that persistent triumph throughout the album’s length, the closing track is not an optimistic one. “It Just Doesn’t Make Any Sense” begins with a lone guitar line, shrouded in feedback. It’s joined by timid drums and a unison plea.
With repeated pleas of, “Just let me bleed out please,” the song lays itself bare. With the band rousing for one final, fevered push in the second half, it brings the record’s story to a close. The song ends with a series of febrile shouts, screaming, “You ruined it / you ruined it / you ruined it,” again and again until nothing is left but the lone guitar from the song’s introduction.
“Razzle Frazzle” is an album with immense depth, most notably in its vocals. The first instinct would be to refer to the vocals of this record as anguished. While there is certainly a level of tragedy and strain to them, it would be ignoring the nuance in Beatricks’ voice and deft lyricality.
This isn’t ten songs of utter pain, and it’s not ten songs of unadulterated joy. This album is a complex array, with an undercurrent of loss to its songs about love, and a twinge of joy to its songs about heartbreak. It gives the album a longevity that many records fail to keep.
Check out “Razzle Frazzle” on your preferred streaming service and follow Beatricks on Twitter @beaflakes. If you also can’t stop yourself from listening to this album on repeat, let us know at @lgndsoftmrw.
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