Insight & Critique
  • DAC
  • Indie Music Album Reviews
  • About
  • Submissions
  • Top albums
  • Features
  • Contact

Audio Vulture - Wind Up Horror Stories

9/2/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
Audio Vulture

Wind Up Horror Stories
Meridian House Recordings; 2015

3.8 out of 5


By Mike Przygoda

Wind Up Horror Stories by Audio Vulture is a slightly humorous/slightly disturbing trippy listen that is clever, funny and campy, but can still be quite dark.

“My Black Widows Eye” is the best song on the album built around a catchy but scary guitar riff, some distant horn-like tones and tape hiss that doubles as cracking fire throughout the middle.  Combined with some trippy filters on the hi-hat that gives some strange blips and suspensions in time adding to the soundscape trippiness. “I Love It When You Lie” has a distorted vocal that stirs in the grit with the buzzy guitars whose ostinato pattern forms the basis for the song. There is almost a dance-like quality to the song in the synths, drum pattern and overall vibe. It’s catchy and subversive. 

“Payday For Allison Rose” begins with a carnival barker announcing the various acts before an analog-sounding synth and a compressed drum track pull everything down the rabbit hole. The Beck vocal-inflection continues on this track though with a slightly Lou Reed-ish monotone apathy. Muted trumpet sneaks in the background as do various filters on the synth swirling around the location back and forth from the aforementioned carnival.“

“Replace Me With A Skeleton Key” plays with some tape loops of what could be some mad ramblings in a Steve Reich “It’s Gonna Rain” spirit (though with slightly more danger) that are sped up occasionally before the garage-pop fuzz starts. “Mr. Convalescent” derives some of its edge from an amped acoustic guitar and some gnarled synths. The melody and lyrics though are McCartney-esque (if going through the mind of Nick Cave that is). The contrast is intriguing and clever. “Tourist Trap” is based around what could be a baseball organist from hell playing through an 8-bit video game. It’s funny, clever and catchy, with the half-step modulation adding tension throughout.

Some of the songs could use a bit more time in the oven. “Paper Ghost” starts with a Tom Waits squonk-a-thon before moving into Beck-like vocal inflections. The offbeat guitar chunks add an Eastern European flavor to it, though there are a few cymbal hits that are missing and lose the groove slightly. “Red Low Rival” is an epilogue musically to “Paper Ghosts” in the same key and feel, but with more tape hiss added. As the song builds however, there is an interesting ascending line that gives a more sinister feel to the track.

“Moth Ball Flowers” has some fantastic vibraphone hits throughout that along with acoustic bass (or cello) tones drive the riff and give the song a film noir quality via David Lynch.  Some of the drum tracks, however, don’t quite line up with each other, the flams taking some of the drive away from what otherwise is a great mysterious poem. “The Black Cat” has an interesting synth patch and lyrics, but is a bit repetitive in the chord structure and beat, never quite taking off.

The album closes with “The Deadly Organ” and plays into the double entendre of the title with a short monologue not alluding to the instrument that follows (and reflects the title). The chorus is very catchy and propelled nicely by the filtered tambourine that whooshes by as it subdivides.

There is lots of tape hiss throughout the album, which can be distracting at times, but overall plays into the voyeur aspect of the experience of listening to the album, and thus is quite effective in giving a danger to the overall listening experience.
official website
Tweet
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

       Critique/insight

    We are dedicated to informing the public about the different types of independent  music that is available for your listening pleasure as well as giving the artist a professional critique from a seasoned music geek. We critique a wide variety of niche genres like experimental, IDM, electronic, ambient, shoegaze and much more.

    Tweets by divideanconqer
    Are you one of our faithful visitors who enjoys our website? Like us on Facebook


    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012

Company

About
Contributors

Newsletter

Newsletter
Book Your Band

© Divide and Conquer 2021. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • DAC
  • Indie Music Album Reviews
  • About
  • Submissions
  • Top albums
  • Features
  • Contact