by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Sad Cactus Records have their ears closer to the underground than most. Their bands might not have immediate name recognition but once you hear them you're hooked. There's nothing quite like discovering new music and Sad Cactus is a treasure trove of awesome new bands (see SUPERTEEN, Mothpuppy, Spew, etc). Enter Bucket, a stellar and wonky new addition to the label. Set to release Bouquet this Friday, March 31st, the Western Mass quartet recorded the album together with super-producer (that's right, I said it) Justin Pizzoferrato. The results are a collection of finely tuned and creatively tangled songs that blur the lines between pop-friendly unit shifting accessibility and recklessly cool complexity.
"Making of a Shape," the record's second single opens with a disorienting arpeggio, a sound similar to the feeling of entering The Twilight Zone. It doesn't last long though as the band peel forward with a thick riff, shuffling drums, and a wobbly bass groove. Just as the song comes together, so it comes apart, embracing devolution and collapsing at a whim, bending chords into oblivion and shifting rhythms without warning... and then right back together again. Bucket spend "Making of a Shape" playing with a back-and-forth of freeform sprawl and radio friendly rock, pummeling out math-rock tendencies with focused pop structures. "Making of a Shape" is more than a clever name, it seems to be a mission statement and a great introduction to the band's avant-slacker rock madness.
Bucket's Bouquet is out March 31st via Sad Cactus.