Fang Island | Major

 Sargent House (2012)
By JONATHAN DONALDSON  |  July 24, 2012
3.0 3.0 Stars
fi-1

Although I admit that I was won over when I saw that their press photo is an Olan Mills portrait, I am happy to report that Major is pretty incredible. Judging by the amplifier tones here, these Brooklyn-by-RISD guitar heroes play pretty bleeding loud. It’s a happy-loud — almost like Mogwai cheered the fuck up. The many-splendored guitar blitz of Major rings in the return of good old-fashioned butt rock, but played to the squarely measured rhythms of ’90s emo and Northwest indie stuff like Built To Spill. Harmonized solos echo the parallel-third boogie of Thin Lizzy (“Make Me”) while tricks like false harmonics and finger tapping (“Never Understand,” “Chompers”) peer straight into their crusty Guitar World collection. Be warned! This is no ’70s MOR Butt Rock — it’s more like Switched-On Butt Rock. From the twinkling piano arpeggios on “Kindergarten” to the even more laser-fast ones on “Victorinian,” it appears that the fancy lads are throwing a little J.S. Bach into the mix here. It’s a good move for an album that needs a little variety, which it gets finally about half-way through when the band freaks out with the mad Fahey-chops of their deliriously decadent instrumental “Dooney Rock.” Fang Island? Why not?

Related: Ava Luna | Ice Level, Friends | Manifest!, DIIV | Oshin, More more >
  Topics: CD Reviews , Music, Brooklyn, Arts,  More more >
| More


Most Popular
ARTICLES BY JONATHAN DONALDSON
Share this entry with Delicious
  •   THE UNIFIED MELODY OF SLOWDIM  |  March 20, 2013
    Slowdim drink wine with pizza. It's true. I was there.
  •   THE MARY ONETTES | HIT THE WAVES  |  March 13, 2013
    Hit the Waves is so heartfelt as a pastiche of '80s alternative music that it almost muscles its way into being brilliant.
  •   THE MODERN RETRO OF JESSE DEE  |  March 05, 2013
    On his new record On My Mind/In My Heart , the question is not if Jesse Dee can step up to the challenge of making authentic soul and R&B music in 2013, but rather how he goes about it.
  •   TAME IMPALA’S NEW SURROUND SOUND  |  March 08, 2013
    Whether it's Bradford Cox with Deerhunter, or Dan Snaith with Caribou, or Kevin Parker with Tame Impala, there must be something with this trend in sonic auteurs with cervine band names.
  •   ANIMAL COLLECTIVE BRACE FOR SUCCESS  |  February 26, 2013
    "It seems like a challenge to make something that you have to pay a lot of attention to," says Josh Dibbs.

 See all articles by: JONATHAN DONALDSON