by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Some of the best music comes from the records you don’t quite know what to think of upon first listen. This can happen when something sounds foreign to your ears but it also happens when your expectations get thrown for a loop. That head scratching feeling more often than not evolves though into a profound appreciation, the best of records are often the ones that make you work. Ryan Weitzel’s (of Mystery of Two) latest solo EP, Skies, is that kind of listen. There’s a lot to unpack on first listen and a lot of ground is covered in each song, but its that adventurous songwriting quality that makes each track truly stand out from the endless void of new music. Due out on September 6th via Exit Stencil Recordings (Herzog, Big Bliss, Grant Earl LaValley), what started several years ago as a trio shifted to a solo effort, but the full band sound lives on in the recordings.
The record’s second single, “Faraway,” has a classic post-punk feel, tossing between noisier riffs and stampeding drums with a twangy sensibility just beneath it all. It sounds something like Mission of Burma meets The Gun Club, only with less concern that things may implode at any given time. The structure builds and fades, each dynamic section working to strengthen the next, never lingering too long but making the most of each progression. Every time you think you have this one pegged, its on to the next discordant riff, dreamy bridge, colossal fill, or blistering crescendo.