by Dan Goldin (@paintingwithdan)
There was a time not all that long ago when Philadelphia’s Eraser felt like the DIY no-wave “supergroup” we’ve all been waiting for. Less than fifteen months later and it’s become clear that the band are and have always been more than the sum of its parts. They shine brightly in their own right, with everything else that came before seemingly a step on the path toward Eraser’s irreverent post-punk glow. As last year’s Hideout captured the hearts and minds of forward thinking (and devolved) punks across the globe, the band were learning more about themselves, their collective experiences touring shows together informing a growth in the band while locking into their minimalist tendencies and sordid sense of humor into place.
Set to release their second album Operator! on September 18th via Siltbreeze Records (Non Plus Temps, Cuticles, Puppet Wipes), Eraser - Sonam Parikh (vocals, synths), Kat Bean (bass), Pier Harrison (guitar), and Juliette Rando (drums) - double down on deranged melodies, hypnotic rhythmic pulses, and serrated lyrics that are both politically minded and absurdist. Recorded over the winter together with Mac Kennedy (Poison Ruin), the record is a dizzying trip of synth punk abandon, warped and bubbling one moment and razor sharp the next. The band’s resolve rests in their rhythmic core, bending with melodic interjection, but always snapping back into place. “Crindy,” the record’s lead single comes swirling into being with an immediate bite, bouncing from the bass and drums to the mesmerizing synth fuzz with a sense of joy and a sinister smirk. While the song threatens to come unglued seemingly from the onset, Eraser keep it all together, a ramshackle surge of dizzying chaos.
Speaking about the song, the band shared:
“The song “Crindy” is a portrait of voiceless rage, isolation and resentment. It was inspired by an imaginary figure named “Crindy”. Our writing bassist, Kat, invented Crindy as their house scapegoat. Crindy is an orphan who lives in Kat’s dresser drawer, a sort of Cinderella house elf. When it’s time to take out the trash but you don’t feel like it, “Crindy will do it…” or when there’s a mess left in the kitchen, “Crindy did it.” Crindy’s story evolved in Eraser’s collective imagination, and the result is an ode to Crindy, a chaotic fever dream of weirdo riffs and meticulous percussive force.”