2/04/2012
Kent State - Past Lives (2012)
/Psychedelia, Experimental indie, Psych-rock, Fuzz pop, Alternative rock, Shoegaze/
Comment: the beginning of 2012 is being very busy for Kent State, Nicholas Vance headed combo from California who has issued 3 split issues with Airlooms (tough blues-vibed rock), Doleful Lions (self-conscious glo-rock/indie, somewhere in between chillwave-ish attitude and The Smiths-esque aesthetics), and At The Heart Of The World (radically obsessive and destructive self-reflection resembling of the doings by the likes of Black Dice, Hella, and Lightning Bolt). However, there are 9 tracks which are the whole portion of notches taken out from the abovementioned split issues (the limited edition of tape and digital issues). More concretely, Kent State`s psychedelic death pop (the self-categoration of the group) which consists of cellophanic fuzz-gaze-inflected guitars are this time profoundly variegated with the vibes of frantic knee-deep angst psychedelia hinting at the timeless rock and roll undulation of such groups as The Stooges, My Bloody Valentine, and The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. However, this is not the main reason for the final determination of the album. Obviously a withered yet irresistible call of surrounding environment (the Mojave Desert and Death Valley) adjacent to LA is apparently present there and it makes really sense. An outstanding miscellany which should be enjoyed with the split issues, though. By the way, yesterday I listened to their Walk Through Walls EP which was highly captivating either. In a word - this is our rock`n`roll. You can believe in that.