Review: we broke the weather ‘Restart Game’
I’m not quite the gamer I used to be, but one thing I’ve noticed is that I have a hidden sense of perfectionism that doesn’t translate to other aspects of my life (writing music, cleaning the living room, cooking, etc.). I can think of many times when the smallest mistake prompted me to just do the whole damn level or game over from scratch.
The title of Boston-area act we broke the weather’s newest release evokes that very thing, the need to start anew. What is the game? Society? Civilization? Or the whole universe? It’s a bit difficult to discern. What is easy to understand is that we broke the weather’s dizzying hybrid sound is quite dense and ambitious. The band blends elements of garage rock, psychedelia, stoner, metal, jazz, progressive rock and anything else they can fit into their sonic salad bowl for a sound that is sure to impress fans of The Mars Volta, Hello Scientist and Karnivool among others.
Vestige gives us almost a modern take on early King Crimson. It begins with some ambient post-metalisms but then gives way to a tempo shift with horns, keyboard and clarinets, building a foundation for vulnerable vocals and circular percussion patterns. The mood changes to an ominous one with some crunchy guitar and looming atmospherics before drifting off over the horizon.
Lake St. George is a slightly Hüsker Dü-like punkier affair with higher tenor vocals and lyrics that seem to detail a person trapped in bondage – For so long you’ve been stuck in this place, as the days pass what you’ve known has all changed. In contrast to the preceding track, it hits with more of a verse-chorus-bridge effect while still retaining the musical complexity. The dreamy and aptly titled Heavens Were A Bell soars with a cloudy melody yet becomes more aggressive towards the latter half.
It would be tempting to simply refer to this as ‘prog rock’ but there is so much more within their wide-ranging kaleidoscope of sonic textures and tempo shifts…
we broke the weather are no slouches as musicians, as it’s clear they put quite a bit of effort into the many different arrangements and dynamic shifts. Marionette is definitely reminiscent of Hello Scientist’s joyful aplomb, assaulting the ears with a wide range of guitars, keyboards and horn sections.
Sevenseas builds on its nautical title with throbbing synthesizers and some Earth-style Western guitar flourishes, creating an effect similar to Teeth Of The Sea before launching into some appropriately noodly guitar somewhat in the style of later era Mastodon. The instrumental track Aromatic Decay is a lo-fi number with angular acoustic guitar, while closer Cycles scores with some jazzy arabesques and majestic harmonized melodies between the instruments.
On their second release, we broke the weather have shown that they have a rich musical vision to share. They are yet another of an increasing number of bands whose influences are far-flung yet the solidified end creation is a style that defies categorization. It would be tempting to simply refer to this as ‘prog rock’ but there is so much more within their wide-ranging kaleidoscope of sonic textures and tempo shifts. You don’t need to go back to the main menu for this game!
Label: Argonauta Records
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Rob Walsh
