lull
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Spangle call Lilli line (SCLL) is a new band for me so coming into this experience, even just by name alone, was a tepid adventure. however, i couldn’t be any less tepid about about lull or how this band will ease into the rest of my year’s music play time. lull feels like it has the right cauldron of ingredients simmering together in toiling concoction. the album has a little bit of cool, a little bit of chill, a little bit of cerebral, a little bit of fun, a little bit of chromatic melancholy. the album runs as an indie rock / pop scene, but reminds me so much of my favorite prog rock group School Food Punishment. which is about the greatest recommend i could give to a new album like this. there is a really great groove that that extends through the album that never looses its footing. even as it turns into its own little side paths and styles, the album comes out as a whole and wholly enjoyable by conclusion.
it’s songs like “someone in the flower” that pull my attention so fully into the album. the song just rides the waves of its own making with ease. the bass is extremely groovy and a little funky, there is an excellent drone of crackling static beneath the whole thing and vocalist (Kana Otsubo) has such an easy and approachable voice to lock on to. the song hits a few different gears as it progresses but each one only feel like an exciting step and, eventual, build to the song’s finale. as all of its pieces meld into one the sound of SCLL comes into perfect focus. the band has a really clear frame to their music that never holds on too tightly, letting each song just to exist and play out in some entertaining or fun ways.
my favorite part of School Food Punishment is their ability to combine deep digital noise and interference with their rock sound to produce music that scratches a certain cerebral itch for the brain. in this same way, i can’t help but become endeared to SCLL’s style. lull plays around with these very same digital obfuscations and affects and droning statics to base their music to pull together this colorful representation. “silence”, for instance, is a building of repetitious layers that derive meaning from this semi-chaotic base. as the song builds over this foundation, the rock band can play themselves through. the guitar work is vibrant, the bass is is never smothered and Otsubo’s voice has a trance-like quality that comes in and out, over and over. it’s a really cool song that feels incredibly replayable and drives home the allure of SCLL. they never feel like they try too hard to win you over, but their confidence in style ultimately sell the band.
at worst, the album is still an enjoyable time. you can feel them dip into a more energetic and carefree model of music in songs like “talking” and “snow line”. in fact, each time i try to skip “talking”, there is something that keeps me around for the first minute and then the song as a whole. it’s playful in its synthetic soundscapes and kinda wonky in its instrumentation, but Otsubo’s voice centers the song in a more somber area. if anything, the contrast is pretty interesting and definitely refreshing. it’s certainly not the song i’ll be revisitng the album for, but i seem to stick around for it each time anyway. “snow line” is a bit too jaunty to end the album on and steps away from what i like so much about lull, yet the song still manages to feel at home with that SCLL is working towards. for this, i can appreciate that it gives the album a certain texture most albums seem afraid to attempt.
if this is SPCLL’s latest album in their discography (starting in 1998), then you can consider me formally interested in their past releases. if you are looking for a new band to explore, a new album to dig in to, lull is a great place to go. certain parts explore the kind of music i am more personally interested in, but i won’t stomp them for releasing something that feels so interesting and fun to listen to. the album is at its best when it blurs the lines between its playful side of creativity and tapping in to those melacholic and inward facing feelings set around downtempo rock. lull won’t earn the highest rating this year, but i think i’ll keep coming back anyway. there is more here than initally meets the eye.
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Highlights
someone in the flower
Literal
five means
silence
Tracklist
Literal
seascape
five means
someone in the flower
talking
willow
silence
may say
snow line
