Gulfer - Third Wind - CASSETTES

Named for the band's third lease on life, Third Wind finds Gulfer at a unique moment in their ten-plus year career. When they started in 2011, Gulfer played scrappy, complex math rock influenced by the emo revival. But in 2024 they've emerged almost unrecognizable, while still retaining the spirit of what made them all fall in love with Gulfer in the first place.Third Wind's stylistic turns are emphasized by deeper texture and simpler songwriting, influenced by the reemergence of 90s alternative and shoegaze. With a new emphasis on atmosphere and more straightforward composition, Gulfer give themselves space to explore audaciously. Album opener InchCleanInch gets as close to pop as the band has ever been, where InchNo BrainerInch dabbles deftly in downer rock that asks Inchwhat even is my fucking place in the world?InchBold juxtapositions feature elsewhere on Third Wind pop-punk bruiser InchToo SlowInch stops on a dime before evolving into a slow burning drum n bass passage, all within two minutes. And then there's InchHeartshapeInch, a downright love song shrouded in virtuosic performance and electric-acoustic counterpoint. Although these contrasts could be construed as aimless fiddling, their seamlessness is the true essence of Third Wind, indicative of a sage band with a renewed love for what they do.