[$5 // Edition of 40 // https://moreeaze.bandcamp.com/album/frail]
What I see right away when I look at this artist name is that if things have more eaze then they should be "easier" or maybe even in this case "eazier", but if this was called "Eazier" I'd probably compare the name to Hozier and, well, we don't need that. So let's get into the music because, really, what's in a name anyway? The sounds on "(frail)" vary from what could be considered ambient noise right down to the kind of pop songs that you could hear on the radio. But these are not placed back to back in some sort of odd take on society, rather they flow from one into the other-- almost in so much a way as one births the other.
We begin with a decent amount of what sounds like static on my first listen but I later think it has a closer sound to the downpour of rain outside of the window. Yes, not only does it sound like rain but it has that distinct vibe that makes you feel as if you are inside listening to it rather than outside trapped in it. The sound of the winds pick up and overall the sounds just intensify. This brings us to deep, cavernous vocals and I'm begining to think my initial idea of this being inside a house is false and perhaps we have been stuck in a cave this whole time. I'm reminded of the movie where James Franco cuts off his own arm, but I quickly move past it.
A kind of soul singing comes out, from these previous notes of the voice, and it sounds as if it is being sampled but I cannot be sure. Banjos are plucked and this is all mixed together now as the being trapped in a cave feel blends with some sort of radio hit single. I'm actually at this point though thinking more about the movie simply called "The Cave" and I'm okay with that. The vocals sound almost like autotune to me, though it might just be my pop infuence that hears it, and the words "I try" are being sung, among others and I can't help but think about someone trapped in a cave and coming to their end.
This all comes to a break, as that was the first movement of Side A and we venture into a shuffling of papers, a ringing hum and then the static returns. A drum machine taps and shakes, ever so slightly, before some sharp sounds take us into full on Phil Collins drums. I'm singing "I can feel it coming in the air tonight" in my head, but it doesn't seem appropriate since someone just died in a cave. Some nice, 1980's style crime beat synth comes in, almost in a Michael Jackson dance sort of way and as the singing returns we go full on song. It's somewhat like Owl City, for a point of popular reference, but thre are other pieces to it as well. Whirrs and lasers lead to a robot meltdown to end Side A.
On the flip side we open with a beep and then some sharpness which turns into guitar notes that have a somewhat dark sound to them. There are X-Files type of keys coming out and then singing with dramatic strings. It's a Phantom Planet type of ballad now and, of couse, I'm only referencing Phantom Planet because I assume most people know who they are though I realize that I might need to upate my popular references though I'm not particularly looking forward to it. There is a jazzy flurry and then cymbal crashes followed by more loud ringing to end out the first movement of Side B.
Clicking beats bring in electronics and classical strings for the next portion which has vocals and just overall reminds me of a Blue October song, something from either "Approaching Normal" or the album before it but not a radio song. I'm not really sure whether people ever follow my Blue October lead either because, to me, saying something sounds like Blue October isn't really helping to identify it because Blue October has various sounds throughout their many albums and songs so it can be a rather vague comparison to throw out there which is why I like to at least try to get it to a specific album.
Overall, "(frail)" is a most excellent cassette that I consider to be one of the finest I've ever heard simply because it seems to take elements of every type of music that I listen to right now (Yes, every type) and blend them together in a way that they're not so much on top of each other because that would sound like a clusterfuck, but they stretch out and evolve from one into another. In some ways, it's like having your whole musical career flash before your eyes except it's not chronological (at least for me), but the fact that it kind of represents what I listen to in all of its various forms is quite an impressive accomplishment. I've never had a good answer for "What kind of music do you like?" but now I will simply say "I like more eaze".
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