Rapid Fire Reviews: Experimental Rock with Model/Actriz, Algiers & Narrow Head
Dogsbody - Model/Actriz
Model/Actriz is a Brooklyn four-piece experimental rock act that I first heard about last year when they dropped what would ultimately become the lead single to this record. While I kept my eye on the band and wasn't surprised by the positive buzz the record was generating, it still took me too long to get around to listening and reviewing it. While I may not be as glowingly positive towards the record as others, it's a great record that could be used as a springboard into something an all-time great follow-up.
The record kicks off with Donkey Show a ripping introduction that shifts from distant shrill noise into churning riffs and lethal intensity about a minute in. It's a great way to start the album off alongside the lead single Mosquito which has grown on me a lot with it's bitter repetition on the hook sounding better and better each time. I also love the one-two punch of the very neurotic pummeling Slate immediately followed up by a slower but no less harrowing song in Divers. The track manages to keep up the dark energy of the record even while shifting up the sound and sonic intensity. The second half of the album is a bit more compositionally sparse and while it's more inconsistent than the first half it also breeds some great highlights. Amaranth starts off the second half with more crushing instrumental passages and great soaring lead vocals. Every time I hear the song it grows on me even more to the point where I think it might be my favorite on the whole album now. I also love the closing track Sun In which is sonically minimal but comes with all he dense crushing drama you could ask for in a great closer. While the versatile instrumentals can be great particularly when they're being deployed in an absolutely crushing manner, the vocals are the highlight here and almost all of the best songs are made by their range of fantastic singing. This album isn't perfect, but it's an incredible start that most bands couldn't dream of for their debut and if Model/Actriz can put it all together they may have a classic in their future. But for now, this is probably gonna be one of the best experimental rock records of the year when all is said and done. 7.5/10
Shook - Algiers
Algiers have always been a band that were more exciting to me in concept than in execution. Across their first three albums, they produced a number of great songs but were never able to completely win me over as a lot of their righteous messaging seemed to come intertwined with just average instrumentation and composition. After hearing a number of the singles from this record and looking at the tracklist which sports an impressive amount of high-quality features it was clear that the band would be leaning into hip-hop influences more than ever before. Given that my issue with the band has often been consistency seeing this 17 song tracklist made me a bit nervous, though the album does get off to a strong start with an intro that ends with a classic Big Rube album intro and a pair of singles I liked in Irreversible Damage with Zach De La Rocha and 73%. Unfortunately, the quality of the record starts to fall off quite a bit from there first with short songs that both have interesting instrumentals but don't do anything with them and then leading into the disappointing bite back. I was really excited for this song because it features two MCs I've liked a lot in the past billy woods and BACKXWASH. But the result doesn't really have the chops to support either artists talent and goes on way too long as a full 6 minutes.
The record doesn't really have another streak anywhere near as strong as the opening run. While some of the shorter more interlude-style songs can be really informative to the record's core messages and themes they do have a bit of an effect on the flow of the album, though removing them entirely wouldn't fix how forgettable so much of the songwriting is. The problem I have with this record that is new is the complete lack of bite it has. One thing you could usually always count on Algiers for was energy and while this record has it's moments so much of the runtime goes by so passively. It's for that reason that I think this might be my least favorite Algiers album yet and given that I already wasn't crazy about them, I'm not sure how many more albums worth of material I'll find the time to listen to. 5/10
