by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Perhaps you don't know who Anthony Fremont is, or what his Garden Solutions might be... well, neither do I. What I do know however, is that Anthony Fremont's Garden Solutions is made up of four of Chicago DIY's finest musicians: Marcus Drake (Evasive Backflip), Nnamdi Ogbonnaya, Seth Engel (Options, Coaster, Great Deceivers), and Nate Amos (Water From Your Eyes). Set to release Anthology on Friday, October 13th via Sooper Records, the collection pairs together two incredible EPs Good Life and American Dream, the latter of which we have the pleasure of premiering below together with a few videos (because seeing is believing).
As you may expect with the caliber of musicians involved, American Dream is a wild ride through dexterous post-hardcore and bent math pop wackiness. Free of restrictions (and sensibilities), the quartet rage through warped reality like a possession gone wrong, a reoccurring theme of the project, based on an episode of The Twilight Zone. Marcus Drake, (the band's songwriter and mastermind) has been possessed by the titular Anthony Fremont, and the monster is winning (and by proxy, so are we). American Dream is pure, unadulterated, spastic bliss; an explosion of noise and color.
From the eruption of the title track, things are off their axis immediately, wobbling with colossal riffs over convulsing rhythms, shifting and collapsing into carefully manipulated mayhem that's as destructive as it is engaging. "Room With A View" is a brief respite, opening with a tangled progression that's easily digestible before eventually diving into the deranged stomach-turning intensity the band really thrive at. Despite the knotted chaos, there's a brightness to it all, an ever shimmering glow keeping things light in the face of insanity. After an amusing interlude, the shapeshifting continues on "Echo Box," a song that tears through post-punk, hardcore, funk, and maybe even some Latin influences to create something unfurled and most of all, wildly enjoyable. It's a kitchen sink of exploration, coming together like an earthquake, colliding recklessly as the pieces all fall directly into place.
Anthony Fremont's Garden Solutions' Anthology is out October 13th via Sooper Records.