Album Review: Aloha – Home Acres
Formed by Matthew Gengler and Tony Cavallario in 1997, Aloha have been described as indie rock, experimental, progressive rock, post rock and lord knows how many other micro-genres. The reality is that rather than fitting into any one genre or sub-genre, they span several with their energetic upbeat sound, and with four albums under their belt already it’s clearly a sound that works.
Fifth full length album ‘Home Acres’ is their biggest and most upbeat album to date and it’s pretty good. ‘Home Acres’ has the feel of an album that might have been recorded in the early nineties. There are traces of shoegaze, without the feedback, as well as the college rock of bands like R.E.M. and Dinosaur Jr, but with enough pop sensibilities to leave the heavier elements behind.
Starting with a bang that made me jump so much I almost spat my tea out, album opener ‘Building A Fire’ is the heaviest track on the album. It has a repetitive, pneumatic beat that sounds like sampled handclaps and builds to an intense crescendo with guitars being thrashed and spaced out vocals. Further on things get a little poppier with tracks like ‘Microviolence’ and ‘Cold Storage’. The best track on the album is the plaintive ‘I’m In Trouble’ which is a little reminiscent of Nico era Velvet Underground, while the weakest is ‘Waterwheel’ which strays a little close to the middle of the road. Overall though a pretty strong offering.
4/5
Out 3rd September on Polyvinyl records
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www.polyvinylrecords.com
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