Big news! My go-to “I bet you’ve never heard of this” album, no longer available in stores and produced before the days of Bandcamp, is now available on YouTube. It looks like it was actually uploaded about a year ago, but I just discovered it and compiled it into a playlist. I absolutely adore this album. It’s a rare confluence of raw edge, intelligent songwriting, and intriguing lyrics delivered by a solid three-piece.
At only 8 songs at about 5 minutes each, it’s a pretty quick listen, so get listening while you read why I love it so much.
The Whole Fantastic World – Chime
- Here’s to Looking Up Your Old Address: Like a few others tracks on this record, this song is about death. As the melody weaves in between the choppy guitar, smooth synths, and an active bassline, we learn about a girl named Dreary’s last night, concluding with “As she made her way out of the bank, To see a sea of Turin’s finest steady their aim, With one shot. Her last night.” This song sets up the tone for the rest of the record with active instrumental interludes in between many of the verses.
- We’ve Got the Books: I love the overlapping vocals at the outro of this one.
- Postcards from Out of Town: The delightful major/minor chopped guitar at the beginning sets up the back and forth nature of this song, which is about an old writer being interviewed for the first time in years. The lyrics alternate between interviewer or the interviewee in sort of a verse/refrain cadence. Much like the first song, this one meets a frantic and violent end.
- From Aspic to Zoo: This is the song that did it for me. I heard this on Pandora one day and spent weeks tracking it down, buying the album as soon as I found it. It’s an absolutely haunting song with vivid imagery, lyrics like a vocab quiz, and, you guessed it, an untimely end.
- Nor’easter: The frantic pace of the album slows with this track, as the lyrics describe staying in and the guitar soulfully soars.
- Beets for Bombs: Right back to full steam, I think this track has the best instrumental interludes, especially the rising and falling guitar riff at the 2 minute mark, and the drum shuffle that immediately follows.
- Osieki: This synth-heavy track is supported by a solid drum/bass groove while the lyrics drone about the small victories in life. Listen to 3:25 for a great vocal break in the song.
- Under Red Umbrellas: The last 3 minutes of this 7-minute closing track are a focused, aggressive groove with synth layers piling up as it goes on. It’s a wild and fun way to end a great 40 minutes.