Ad Archaea - Amusement Parks On Fire: Review
Amusement Parks On Fire
are a British rock band who dabbled in the realms of shoegaze and noise rock during the 2000's. After a long hiatus the band returned in 2018 with a new EP and series of live shows, before leading up to the release of Ad Archaea, their 4th album overall and first in 11 years.
Review By Lav:
Amusement Parks On Fire are a personal passion of mine. They come from a time in the 2000's where shoegaze and experimental rock bands in general never really got the credit they deserve and they're one of many bands from that era I consider to be extremely underrated. The bands 2004 self-titled album is a huge favorite of mine and I was excited to see what elements of their sound the band would maintain with over a decade having passed since their previous studio album. With no singles I wasn't really sure what to expect but the band is holding tight to their layered rock sound and proves a few times throughout Ad Archaea that they still do it well.
The record opens with a by the numbers shoegaze track in Old Salt. It's a buzzing opener that makes the band feel like they haven't blinked since their 2000's output. The guitars sounds great and the bridge has a really interesting combination of drum cornering and quick plucked riffs without even a hint of never that comes off really tinny. The noisy breakdown and subsequent triumphant rush of the hook make the song a great opener and big highlight. The next big highlight is the longest track on the record Aight Can Wait. I love the way that the rushes of sound continue to feel like they are building to something throughout the track. I love the chorus of voices which are basically used as an instrument among the array of percussion and dense layers of guitars. While I do with the track had a show-stopping finale I still thoroughly enjoy the track and it stays engaging throughout.
Boom Vang has quite the explosive introduction and I absolutely love the drums which sound like they are just exploding off every impact. The short hard-hitting sonic loops that the instrumentation work in are slightly dissonant and maligned which makes for some really great and compelling musical passages. The vocals are fittingly obscured but sweetly delivered and the whole thing feels like it belongs in a museum of shoegaze. Atomised is a slightly dreamier song but it still maintains most of its edge. The vocals are cleaner and a bit softer making the hook on here one of the more direct and catchy, even if the vocals aren't necessarily a highlight. The song also gets off to a pretty exciting conclusion with its dueling guitar tones and I think it sets the record off on a solid sequence of tracks to its conclusion. That closing track is Blue Room which gets off to a good start with catchy refrains and a totally blissful array of instrumentation which is fabulously mixed. The song gets more and more eerie as it goes on and the heavy instrumentation starts to disappear completely with these very ominous vocals starting to envelop the song before some almost horror movie like effects work their way in. It's an extremely interesting finale that excites me throughout every time.
The title track An Archaea stands out quite a bit from the rest of the record starting with the lyricism which is much more direct here than anywhere else. The first half of the song is spent with a really clear mix consisting mainly of piano and vocals before the rest of the instrumentation works its way in leading with a punchy extended drum sequence. The song never really stops feeling like a showtune in some regards with the piano staying prominent and the tempo feeling relentless after 5 minutes. I've never heard the band quite sounding like this, but I somewhat enjoy it.
The record has two instrumental transitions both of which run between two and three minutes. I enjoy them both particularly Diving Bell even though it happens to be the transition between what is likely my two least favorite songs on the record. No Fission comes first and it delivers much clearer and more prominent vocals sounding more like a dream pop band of the 2010's than a shoegaze band of the 2000's. I wish the refrains had a little bit more to them since it feels like the same short loop sung over and over again with a vocal bravado that feels inappropriate for the sound of the track. It does have a heavy swell in the back half that at least makes it more interesting down the stretch but getting there can be a bit tedious. Breakers on the other hand starts off well as we absolutely erupt into the song with chugging guitars that are far from some of the records other blissful tones, so different that it feels quite jarring. Once again I have a problem with the vocals and the hammed up over-pronounced syllables that comes straight out of The Drums' Johnny Pierce playbook but sounds awkward on a song like this. While the hazy blend of instrumentation is a cool sound it is one of the least satisfying compositions on the record unfortunately.
At this point in the bands career I wasn't expecting them to be re-inventing themselves or their sound, in fact all I was hoping for was proof that they still know how to do what they've always done well. On Ad Archaea they delivered exactly that turning back the clock with a sound that is mostly reminiscent of their heyday without a dip in terms of quality. The record makes up for its dated feel by effectively linking good compositions with exciting, heavy performances that remind me why I have such a strong admiration for that era in the first place. Seeing the band back, seeming like they are having fun and even trying a few new things out here and there is everything I hoped the record would be and I'm glad we finally have it. 7/10
I am really drawn to the colors and abstraction of this cover, That's where it shines. It makes the simple subject of flowers become something more. It's a little basic in how it's composed and doesn't really get me excited, having more of a mellow feeling. The yellow text is really nice and the choice of type face is also a nice change from the normal thin fonts we see used in covers. 7/10
