The Uptights

At The Wörthersee Hotel

Written by: DR on 13/01/2012 22:47:08

If you were to ask The Uptights to do much of anything, they would probably look at you with the same bewildered look I'd have if you made me listen to an album that's the result of a band who don't like to do much of anything. In other words, look at that album art: it's a direct symptom of this deliberately and unrelentingly lo-fi nature that The Uptights abide by, almost religiously.

However, look closer and you'll see that it must have taken a lot of care and a fair amount of time in order to create something that looks as deliberately simple as that. This is, in a way, the ultimate metaphor for "At The Wörthersee Hotel". On the face of it, it sounds so lo-fi that it seems the band don't give a shit about you not being able to understand what the vocalist is saying, or that you can't clearly make out the patterns of any particular instrument. The production has left so little room that it's as though the band recorded this in a cupboard. I can still barely understand what is being sung, or what particular noises are or where they are coming from. It's an unashamed throwback to when 'indie' meant independent, when 'indie' bands couldn't afford flash, expensive recording studios.

This is, quite obviously, the point of The Uptights. This trio from Oslo, Norway, are throwing the listener back to the days of extremely lo-fi indie music, but they do so with a lot of sincerity, and that's ultimately why "At The Wörthersee Hotel" works. It's endearing enough to be enjoyable to listen to, and it's just the right amount of unclear that keeps you coming back for more. It's noisy, reckless, needlessly obscure, but that's the fun!

7

Download: It all, for free, right here
For The Fans of: lo-fi indie music; Pavement, maybe?
Listen: Bandcamp

Release Date 03.03.2011
Self-Released

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