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Lilac Daze

Sedated EP

Written by: PP on 17/12/2014 23:14:31

Six tracks of noisy, fuzzy punk rock with vibes of 90s alternative and nuances of grunge amidst the warmth-driven soundscape, plus a healthy dose of schizophrenia as an added benefit? Sign me up. Lilac Daze from Maryland go through a variety of approaches to basement punk on "Sedated" EP that range from the soothing to the aggressively fuzzed out and eclectic, and pretty much everything in between, while retaining an uncontrollable, raw, and unpolished vibe to the whole recording in the process.

It's an interesting mix of styles indeed. On one hand, you have the soothing female vocals in "Kathleen", which recall the awkward shyness of Lemuria, whereas "Knives" borrows from Chumped's innocent and slightly naive sounding female fronted garage punk. It's instantly catchy and carries a good energy, though, and sometimes they're even juxtaposed with the rowdier male vocals, such as on opener "Fredrick Rock City", which incidentally sounds like Bangers and Joyce Manor had a love child instrumentally. The latter band continues to be the main reference point throughout the record given the noisy guitars and warm fuzzy feeling of the soundscape overall, leaving behind a positive energy of a band that's playing music for the sheer joy of doing so. That the songs are surprisingly catchy in the process is only an added bonus - but sometimes they aren't obviously so and result in instrumental chaos like on the aggressive and almost hardcore sounding "Life Scout" that races by you in just over a minute and ten seconds.

What I like most about "Sedated" EP though is its sense of urgency. Mistakes, sloppy playing and loose production are but an afterthought in a sound where the purpose is to deliver a noisy-but-catchy expression of garage/punk rock near its best. It's a fun record that should get you moving in an instant.

Download: Porcelain God, Frederick Rock City, Fountain And Medicine
For the fans of: Bangers, Joyce Manor, Lemuria, Chumped, Tenement
Listen: Facebook

Release date 08.07.2014
Black Numbers