Untied States - Instant Everything, Constant Nothing

Untied States
Instant Everything, Constant Nothing
(Distile)
Rating: 3.5 of 5


The dank, sweltering, seedy city streets of Fulton County, Georgia; a byzantine conduit delineating parking garages, subway stations, and vacant warehouses, this is Atlanta—a hub mostly credited to a burgeoning hip-hop scene. But, with some of those empty buildings serving as practice spaces, indie rock has spread its wings and flown 70 miles west from Athens to the big city. First Deerhunter, now we have the difform sounds of the Untied States.

The first big-time studio recording from this quintet, released by the French label Distile, is a jagged salmagundi of post-punk, alternative, post-hardcore, nugaze, prog, and experimental art-rock genres. It’s a mindfucker of an album with Hail to the Thief-era Radiohead nuances, contorted vocal stranglings, loads of Fender guitar chinks, and an extreme lack of song choruses.

Sometimes misanthropic, seldom too frightening, and many times bizarre; Instant Everything, Constant Nothing flashes like hot light refracting. Taking sharp turns in trajectory; songs flip and fold back upon themselves in acute angles.

“Not Fences, Mere Masks” is a neverending tunnel ride through the dark trenches of the underground; making use of descending chords and trodded heavily upon by the bass track. “Unsilvered Mirrors” squirms about in sudden and extreme changeableness. A small stolen melody line from Cream’s “I Feel Free” twice surfaces, briefly.

“These Dead Birds” is very Thurston Moore; a foot-stumbling and staggering waltz that comes back to bitingly sneer. Industrial shapes backdrop “Delusions Are Grander” and “Wrestling With Entropy in the Rehabbed Factory”. It’s all so busy and frenetic, at times, that skipping about on the record will satisfy you none.

It’s important to let Instant Everything, Constant Nothing get its chance with a full spin on your player, and probably several more. The fascination in hearing these tracks deconstruct before your ears will compel you to do so. As if dully mesmerized, you just will.

Unsilvered Mirrors - Untied States

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***see them play tonight... Tuesday, April 20th at Garfield Artworks in Pittsburgh
9pm start w/ Grasso Electtrica