Readymade - On Point and Red
(Endearing)
I'm sure Readymade get plenty of comparisons to their fellow
space-via-Canada-rockers Sianspheric, and that's a bandwagon I'm hoping to
jump on as soon as possible. However, where Sianspheric can occasionally
take off into realms well-charted by Windy & Carl, Readymade gleans the
textures of the drone/space scene and apply it to their sharpened hooks and
well-crafted pop songs.
"On Point and Red" touches on most of the spectrum between Eno's ambient
series and My Bloody Valentine's signature wall of sound. The ever present
keyboard, melodic bass, programmed drums, and catchy vocals accompany
changing guitar sounds throughout the album. Whether it's densely washed
out, clean picked, lightly strummed in time to a heavy tremelo, thickly
distorted, or rhythmically pounded, the guitar doesn't hold to a single
quality throughout. The same overall feel is achieved in each song, so it
holds together fine.
The lyrics for "Cold Lamping" betray a grittier side of the band: "a layer
concrete / to step isolate / the state of my mind / bordered by power lines
/ and the grid underneath me." This recurring theme of technology
("Lightstrands," "The Block Alone," "Terminal Sounds at Night") all give the
listener a sense of complete isolation from the huge steel world built
around them. Fellow Vancouver resident Douglas Coupland seems to have some
like-minded folks in his hometown.
The centerpiece for the album is "Terminal Sounds at Night" which captures
the feel of an airport slowed down to a crawl at 4:00 am. The open, empty
structuring and hazy feel recalling Bark Psychosis.
The album ends with a hidden track of sorts. It's a pretty 4 minute Stars
of the Lid-esque track. It ends the album with blurry tone swells to great
effect.
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