It’s sad to note the relative lack of women musicians in today’s music scene. Sure, pop princesses dominate the mainstream spotlight, but in rock music, men have long been the majority. So whenever a female musician comes out with something decent, it gives me hope. Musicians like Fiona Apple and St. Vincent have proved that girls can still rock.
TEEN – In Limbo (Carpark)
It’s sad to note the relative lack of women musicians in today’s music scene. Sure, pop princesses dominate the mainstream spotlight, but in rock music, men have long been the majority. So whenever a female musician comes out with something decent, it gives me hope. Musicians like Fiona Apple and St. Vincent have proved that girls can still rock. But even better than good female-fronted bands, are bands made up entirely of women. Those bands are few and far between, and this is why TEEN first captured my attention. These four synth-pop divas look like they walked straight out of an Urban Outfitters catalog, and their music, quite fittingly, sounds like it’s straight off a U.O. mix CD. That’s not to say that TEEN is just another blip in what seems to be the endless surge of chillwave, however.
In Limbo strikes deeper than the record by any given uber-chill one-hit-wonder band. From the start they prove themselves talented musicians with a good sense of composition. Their album at its height brings to mind a more harmonious My Bloody Valentine, or a more fleshed-out Beach House. On the other hand, there are songs (mostly the first couple tracks on the album) that fit right in with the currently hip genres of today. But after multiple listens, In Limbo hit that special spot for me. The band’s ability to transcend genre to create a timeless album is something I value in music.
In Limbo sounds like something you would expect to hear at the end of the world; it’s full of both demonic and angelic sounds. The album’s title track puts it well: “neither fast, nor slow. We’re watching all the happiness pass us by.” Several other songs, like the track “Unable,” have an eerie lack of resolve and leave the listener with a feeling of the void-like abyss.
The more I listen to this record, the more I feel like it sounds like something I’ve heard before. Trying to put a finger on it, though, I soon came to the realization that I have listened to In Limbo enough times that the songs have become subconsciously familiar. This is an album that I think people will remember; it will at least attain cult status. It sounds like a lot of music you’ve heard before, but retains a nostalgic sense of timelessness. Sort of like if The Smiths, but if they put out a shoegaze album.
