NO AGE – Everything In Between
Buy still there, witness ‘Fever Dreaming and Depletion’ that hit you fairly and squarely in the face just when you thought, judging from the first two tracks, that Randall and Spunt had undergone some sort of revolutionary transformation.
But transformation has occured. Everything In Between doesn’t peter out after its first four tracks or descend into a one trick pony. ‘Common Heat’ sports a subtle hook alongside its familiar strum, ‘Skinned’ combines a military precision verse with an off kilter chorus while ‘Katerpillar’ provides a reflective late 80s shoegaze interlude. The mostly restrained second installment features the pop induced ‘Valley Hump Crash’ complete with warped guitar that gives the off the vibe of the Pixies or My Bloody Valentine. ‘Sorts’ sounds like an apocalytic dishevilled mess but fits and the loop and reverb of ‘Dusted’ will be stuck on your head for days. The introspective feel is back with the instrumental ‘Positive Amputation’ before the aptly titled, ‘Shred And Transcend’ rips forward with its brazen feedback infused punk dominated aethestic. No Age haven’t exactly done what the title of this track suggests but the melody that sits underneath the noise here perfectly encapsulates the growth of the band. The final track, ‘Chem Trails’ is a wondrous call and reponse pop tune, wistful and joyous musically yet guarded and defiant lyrically.
The diverse arrangments and original sounds that render the Everything In Between simultaneously accessible yet difficult, familiar yet hard to pin down are the elements that put this album into the special category elevating it above the swirl of good albums and into the great. Randall and Spunt went some way towards vitality with Nouns but they have achieved that important music indicator here. The musical boundaries here are vast and No Age push their sound to the limit. They are now a fully fledged ideas band and that’s one of the highest compliments you can bestow on anyone in the music world.
James Stocker – October 31, 2010
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