Nice Nice - Extra Wow

Nice Nice
Extra Wow
(Warp)
Rating: 3.5 of 5


You want a big record? Prop the door wide open to acid post-rock band, Nice Nice. Their latest off of Warp Records is uncurbed, gutty, and loud. Donning aggregate amounts of garage-y guitars, piquant chimes, swirling synths, and agitating rhythms; Extra Wow jumps right in your face from its genesis.

The Portland duo is high on compression. The first two table-setters establish the bar for the prerequesite tolerance needed to combat the turgid bombast to ensue. “One Hit” is one hell of a throbbing migraine from which to recover, and you might not get the chance with the sweltering clutter the next two clips to follow.

From the wilding whorl of “Everything Falling Apart” to the feel-good hobble of “Big Bounce” to the nu-gaze bumper “A Vibration”, there is so much ground to cover. The disturbing beginning of “A Little Love” recalls the contorted terror of the costume ball scenes in Eyes Wide Shut before reinventing into a churchy disco. “See Waves” makes good of a quirky melody, fitting neatly like a peg in a hole for an Animal Collective tribute. As if to the pulse of a sonic strobe light show, you have to dizzily feel your way through the maze that is this record.

Possibly the most pop-accessible song on Extra Wow, “Make It Gold” is a blinding stare into the sun, with hot-white glints pinching at each strained nerve. When they’re not clamoring about in flailing fits, the drums hold steadfast. You’ve got the tribal boil of “Double Head” for getting in your rain dance. It’s almost time to uncap that bottle of acetaminophen—all the way up until the last two tracks. “New Cascade” shimmers like a groggy ‘morning song’; a slow reawakening from the bender of the previous forty minutes. Lastly, “It’s Here” builds to a crescendo for the first 2:15 and then lazily trickles away.

Extra Wow will surely sit in the pit of your stomach after a once-over. Maybe a little too freak-out busy for you MGMT fans out there, but Nice Nice can keep it cheeky and muster out some heady grooves.

See Waves - Nice Nice

Review posted on ZapTown
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