All the jangles.
“Asleep At Heaven’s Gate” is the third album from Rogue Wave, a five piece indie-rock band from California currently supporting Death Cab For Cutie on their tour. The record is very much in the same vein as Death Cab; quiet indie rock with some sweeping moments and poppy melodies.
The album starts nicely with ‘Harmonium’ and a build up of guitar, drums and piano coming to a crescendo when the catchy tune comes in and takes over. There is a touch of melancholy to the open production and slightly Bright Eyes sounding vocals. ‘Like I Needed’ is alright but a little middle of the road for my taste but with ‘Chicago x 12’ things pick up again. This tune has a folk edge and is very memorable; a twinkling glockenspiel, a very jangly guitar and sing along vocals, especially on the chorus which sticks in your head straight away make this track a joy.
There is plenty of interest to inspire the listener to come back to this record; as well as some solid, and sweetly homely melodies that slide between folk and indie-pop, the varied instrumentation is interesting. Samples are made good use of, so that quite often, odd little noises can be heard amongst the Wurlitzer, keyboard, piano, guitars, bass and drums. They’re also not afraid to be more intense and an occasional heavier blast of guitar stops things from sliding into slushy sentimentality. These extras give the tracks more depth and staying power.
While there are these quirky and more interesting moments, the majority of the record is often more straightforward indie-rock, so it probably won’t be one of those crossover albums that appeals to fans of other genres. But it is enjoyable and all the tunes are performed very well so it should be a treat for those who like their music sweeping, jangly and slightly off kilter, a la Broken Social Scene.