Go West
Sometimes, out of chaos comes order and when it does, it is a blessed relief for all concerned. The start of ‘Add a day going west’ by Susurrus Station was rather chaotic to begin with but after a few tracks and a few listens, things started to fall into place. The Nick Cave-esque vocals started to dominate proceedings and this immediately makes most listeners far more receptive to what is going on. The press release was quite daunting, almost an exercise in naming musical genres as opposed to giving any great insight into the act but after pressing play, you can start to see how it makes sense.
The plaintiff strum on ‘Midway Shuffle’ is not too dissimilar to the one utilized by the Arctic Monkeys on ‘Crying Lighting’ but in every other way, the two songs could not have been further apart. There is a darkness running through the heart of Susurrus Station that even the lightness of the music cannot hide. There is a lot of space on these songs that creates the sense of eeriness at times, almost like a fog filled forest where you know if you enter, trouble will follow. Still, enter you must and that's the feeling that takes you over on this record.
‘Barnstorm’ is a beautifully chaotic number, harnessed by the lead female vocals which a touch of freshness after so many of the downbeat tracks. The tempo changes take you from mariachi to early Neil Young or Love, without ever sounding as commercial. It wears its indie heart on its sleeve but is totally bewitching for it. And thats all before it takes a twist to its Eastern tinged coda.
It is not going to be an album that is welcoming or attractive to all but sometimes these are the best albums to persevere with. The ones that require you to give them a chance but ultimately reward you with greater insights and twists than could be imagined on first listen. With that in mind, if you are going to check this out, be prepared to give it time and listen to it over a few days and give it a chance to sink in, it’s worth it.