ARTIST: Dearly Departed
TITLE: What Awaits Us
LABEL: Black Tide Records
GENRE: Indie
BITRATE: 206kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 50min total
RELEASE DATE: 2007-00-00
RIP DATE: 2007-09-18
TRACK LIST
1. And The Horse You Rode On In 4:21
2. Off With Your Head 3:47
3. Last Stop Willoughby 4:38
4. New Beginning Of An Old Flame 3:58
5. Counting The Cars 3:51
6. Araby 4:15
7. Craddle And All 3:15
8. Juggling Chainsaws (Look Ma' 3:26
No Hands)
9. Anesthesia 1:08
10.Between Hell And Hollywood 4:36
11.Aroura Leigh 4:12
12.Hourglass 5:05
13.The Masquerade 4:11
RELEASE NOTES
For a group that went on hiatus almost directly after the release of their debut
full-length, Believing in Ghosts, it's unexpected that Dearly Departed would be
back so soon with thirteen (twelve not counting ôThe Masqueradeö) new songs to
gift onto the music landscape. After all, it has barely been three years. Keep
in mind that What Awaits Us comes in the midst of several member changes and
losing One Day Savior as a label. Whether already on the mixing board or not,
one has to wonder when the group had any time to record these songs, much less
good tunes that show considerable progression of Dearly Departed's art.
Regardless, as common rule is expected, talent and ambition always sway any
would-be turmoil. This new album will be a treasure to new discoveries while not
disappointing fans that have been with these Long Islanders from the beginning.
Aside from being a record that many would not have expected to be made, What
Awaits Us brings with it drastic changes in the band's overall sound. Completely
non-existent are the ambient samples and soundscapes that served as condiments
to the previous LP. These elements were used to set a noodling, plodding pace
that accentuated soft crooning and thin-skinned breakouts to the tune of a Dredg
rhythm. What the new album showcases is more viscera in its overall approach,
with the band relying on a far more brazen hypothesis. As evidenced by tracks
such as ôOff With Her Head,ö ôLast Stop Willoughby,ö and ôAraby,ö vocalist Mike
Millamo screams, shouts, and skewers the writing quite a bit more and allows his
frustrations and anxieties prime the rest of band into a hypersensitive indie
palette that's somehow as gentle as it is aurally jagged.
Some of this newfound rawness may not entirely be intentional, which forces a
mention of the album's one solitary flaw. What could possibly be due to the
fallout of losing the few pennies the previous label was sending the band's way,
What Awaits Us leaves much to be desired in the production department. One could
go so far as to say that it sounds as if it was mixed on an old school tape
deck. Now that's fine and dandy if it's a garage or noise-rock sound that's
being attempted, but this approach hinders a lot of the chirpy, tonal guitar
work ushered by Jeff Bodzer and Jonathan Cox. To fully appreciate some of the
more intricate arrangements, the best headphones money can buy are needed to cut
through the fuzzed out and airy feedback.
But who needs GGGarth, Ross Robinson, or David Bendeth on the other side of the
glass? Severe overproduction is one of the major problems with rock music these
days anyway. To contradict the prior mentioned, it's just as easy to say that
Dearly Departed is all that much more brilliant for being able to create such
entertaining songs despite being superficially stripped down to the point of
feeling almost outdated.
In the end it's a bit of a seesaw situation. Even without the effects and gloss
of their previous work, through simple sincerity the band manages to sound
grander than they ever did. Yet, without that extra bit of clarity, What Awaits
Us leaves behind the sensation of a sound theory just barely teetering on the
outskirts of brilliance. Even though it's awesome right now, in a few years this
composition will be topping the lists of various music magazines highlighting
favorite indie albums that need to be remastered.
http://www.dearlydepartedmusic.com/