by Kris Handel (@khandel84)
After a handful of releases with the band Goo, frontperson Beck Zegans steps out on her own for Engraving of Armor, a record full of bluesy grunge and folky beauty. Zegans has shown great depth and strength through her previous songwriting, and this record highlights and accentuates that skill, as these songs travel down emotional paths filled with determination and warmth. Engraving of Armor has more of a spectral and cinematic feel than some of her previous work, and there’s a bit of a haunting, fog-like tone to most of these tracks full of dark guitar lines and dusty psych elements. The push towards a slightly darker atmosphere is something that can be a little surprising, but these songs also explode with charm and character, rewarding repeated listens.
The aura Zegans creates on Engraving of Armor are dramatic and contagious, and can range from intense and profound (“When You Were in My Bed”, “I Want You”) to sparse and expansive droning folk “Record Tamer”, “Slither”). Each of these approaches are attacked with burning passion, though Zegans’ directness may vary. The production (Julian Fader) matches each of these songs magnificently as bubbling bass lines and whirring keys are pushed to the fore in the darker moments, while containing an airy energy on the more upbeat tracks. Zegans meets what the songs call for, as her voice can drop to a breathy whisper or explode and refuse to be overtaken by the cascading and strong soundscapes.
“Even On the Phone” combines the mystery of artists like Kate Bush with a goth shoegaze approach, as keyboards wash and plink orchestrally over doom laden guitar crashes. Zegans’ voice drifts in and out with a nightmarish quality, while drums shuffle and shake as these tortured four minutes flash by in what seems a much tighter time span. “Riddle” rides the dark wave a bit further with a more sparse, electronic, almost trance-like approach. Synths flow around the reverb-drenched vocals and the rhythm zigs and zags playfully. This is a bit of a curveball towards the late-middle of the record, adding another spectral dimension for the listener to grasp.
On Engraving of Armor, Zegans maintains the quirky pop qualities she showed off in Goo, but there is something fuller and more shrouded in these songs that drift and hang in the listener’s eardrums like a siren’s song. This psych-folk approach might be a culture shock to those familiar with Zegans’ past activities, but the accentuation of that aspect pays dividends in the end. These songs flow into eachother seamlessly and the atmosphere rarely lets up. Engraving of Armor record seems like a rebirth for Zegans, an album that is full of blossoming layers.