Arts & Culture

Test Spin: Paranoid Void — Literary Math

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When I first listened to all-female Japanese trio Paranoid Void, I learned of the existence of math rock. At first, it did not sound fun, as anything having to do with math is just not fun to me. Math rock, though, is a genre holding some similarities to post-rock that utilizes unconventional time signatures, rhythms and dissonance. Paranoid Void, composed of members Meguri, Yu-Ki and Mipow, is unlike most music I have listened to, and it became evident that the trio put endless effort into their first full-length album, Literary Math. On Paranoid Void’s website, the band describes Literary Math as a “three-dimensional composition of the sound and words that the female sensibility unique to women creates.” Additionally, on the album’s release date, the band published a blog entry explaining what they wanted the album to convey.

Arts & Culture

TEST SPIN: The Avalanches — Wildflower

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The last time The Avalanches released a full-length album, George W. Bush was just elected president, the internet was still in its infancy compared to the totalizing social presence it ballooned into in the mid-naughties and Sept. 11 hadn’t happened yet. Since I Left You, the group’s debut, is as danceable as it is radical in form. The Avalanches methodically overlaid 3,500 samples to create a funky, rich album that is easily playable at a party, yet also deeply rewarding to listen to while alone. Released initially to moderate success in their native Australia, the album has since grown internationally to be revered as among the sharpest examples of contemporary plunderphonics, a genre of samples-based music.

Arts & Culture

TEST SPIN: Inspiraling — Resolve Yourself

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Released with minimal hype by Electric Buffalo Records at the end of a blustery April, Resolve Yourself, the first release from Inspiraling (aka Gil Israel ’16), seems far divorced from landlocked Ithaca. The album occupies a beachy vein that tenuously falls under the surf-rock heading, but mostly rides its marriage of keyboards and hazy guitars into a nebulous realm. Few of Resolve Yourself’s tracks channel powerful momentum. Rather, they slowly drift along like musings from a lazy, sun-drenched afternoon. Resolve Yourself resembles early releases from slacker-rocker Mac DeMarco.

Arts & Culture

TEST SPIN: Explosions in the Sky — The Wilderness

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Explosion in the Sky’s new album, The Wilderness, released April 1, challenges the limits of “study music.” Unlike other instrumental albums, The Wilderness takes listeners away from themselves, and their problem sets, to a busy, vibrant, emotional space of — true to its title — uncharted territory. The Wilderness tells a story better than many lyricists. But, in many ways, the story is written by the listener, who molds each beat to her transient perception. Explosion in the Sky’s daring to blend the serene with the passionate complicates their symphonies not just with the pretexts of rock-and-roll but also with a powerful message that seems, over and over, to undo the album’s calm. From the moment “The Wilderness” begins with its fast-paced electric guitar and rhythmic tambourine, senses blend.