Album Review - The Lower Dens: Nootropics

Lower Dens
Nootropics
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

Albums are tricky things sometimes. A lot of what I listen to I read about well before I actually listen to a single track. I will admit that if I read that a bad has a shoegaze influence, I am more inclined to give them a spin, but I have found that sometimes one man's shoegaze is another man's drone rock, et al. As a result, I tend to take said words with a grain of salt until I am able to make my own interpretation. Lower Dens' second album Nootropics arrived on my desktop with lots of praise for its murky shoegaze textures and dream pop sensibilities. Enter me with hook firmly in mouth and I dove right into it. As I have previously mentioned, I like to listen to album at least 10 times before writing a review, taking into account factors like place I listened to the album, how I listened to it, and what type of mood I was in. The first few spins of Nootropics were immediately bracing and I loved the shadowy nature and interplay of the guitars and singer Jana Hunter's haunting vocals. There is definitely an underlying shoegazey nature to the album, with nods to bands like Slowdive and Cocteau Twins, but there are also nods to dream pop bands like Beach House and Blonde Redhead, with lurking nods to motorik and Krautrock acts. Nootropics sustains a consistent mood throughout its runtime, and can almost be thought of as a suite of interconnected pieces functioning as a whole. Upon subsequent listens, however, I found that this consistency sometimes turned monotonous, begging for some contrast, especially at the back end of the record. But there are enough killer singles on this record that keeps me coming back for more.

You are immediately pulled into Nootropics through a skittering drum base, looping electronics, and mourning guitars. Hunter's distinctive voice floats over the music, sounding like the perfect of mix of k.d. lang's evocative showmanship and Beach House's Victoria Legrand's deep sensuousness. "Alphabet Song" is the perfect entry point for the record, its low key melody and sauntering pace crack open the door just slightly. But this track is slightly misleading as to the direction of Nootropics, as it leads directly into the chugging Krautrock of "Brains," which trades the murky opening for a sprightly, pulsating drum beat, swooning guitars and organs, and Hunter's deeply muttered vocals.



"Propagation" is a gorgeous, haunting track full of shimmering, echoed guitars over a languid beat, sounding like a lost Slowdive single. Hunter's voice comes out of the shadows for one of her most evocative vocals.



"Candy" borrows a classically new wave/80s stance, with spiky guitars and a dark swagger.



"Nova Anthem" ventures into drone territory, with choruses of organs swoop over tinny drum machines and Hunter's angelic voice. The track makes good use of its 5 minutes, never overstaying its welcome, and would have made a fitting end to the record. Unfortunately, Nootropics goes one step further with the 12 minute closer "In The End Is The Beginning" which, to my head-scratching consternation, never rises above its minimal smattering of drums, whining keyboards, and chords of guitar feedback. I was expecting some gradual build or something to happen, but nothing ever does, with this track completely losing me not even halfway into its length. This track might have been more memorable had it not followed the more succinct and more interesting track "Nova Anthem." And this misstep seems to overtake my initial impressions of the album, and made me listen closer to see if my first impressions were misguided. While I don't think it made me dislike the record at all, it pointed out the flaws a little more clearly. The aimless meandering of "In The End Is The Beginning" are foreshadowed by the pretty, yet inconsequential ballad "Lamb" which is all rise with only minor release.



And the lifeless, droning "Lion In Winter, Pt. 1" hardly seems to pair up with its counterpart "Lion In Winter, Pt. 2," which is almost an electronic, motorik version of "Brains."

And this is why I don't write review off the cuff. My first listen of a record is never going to be the same as subsequent ones, and it is always better for me to get the full lay of the land before committing pen to paper, as it were. Aside from a few songs that seemed to echo other tracks, Nootropics has enough in it for me to have no qualms in recommending it and looking forward to more music from Lower Dens.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.