No Joy - More Faithful - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Steeped in folk-rock tradition and powered by the intuitive creative connection between Matt Quinn (vocals, guitar) and Sam Cooper (guitar), the songs on Mt. Joy's eponymous debut depict the former wrestling with his own conscience, where the mundane and the fantastic collide as he processes tragedy, society, and love. Opener InchI'm Your WreckInch describes Inchmonsters in (the) closet, using up the wi-fiInch as it cycles from it's desperate, spiraling verses to it's swinging, stubbornly optimistic coda, while the loping, plaintive chords of InchYounger DaysInch meditate on a frayed psyche and the fear of choosing the wrong path. InchSheep,Inch with it's collapsing, hoarse-voiced cry of Inchfreedom was paid in blood,Inch is a post-Trump salvo on the responsibilities of the fortunate to overcome political and social despondency. InchAstrovanInch is a warm, yearning bit of road-trip philosophy that posits the existence of a Deadhead Jesus cruising the dusty highways of the countryside. And on InchSilver Lining,Inch perhaps the album's brightest moment, Quinn surveys the damage of hard drugs and the vicious cycle of addiction, as the song's melancholic sentiment kicks into it's fervid, defiant chorus, all shout-along vocals and trilling guitars. Album Tracks 1. I'm Your Wreck 2. Dirty Love 3. Silver Lining 4. Bigfoot 5. Sheep 6. Julia 7. MT. Joy 8. Astrovan 9. Cardinal 10. Jenny Jenkins 11. Sado 12. St. George 13. Younger Days

No Joy's relentless sonic permutations are evidence of frontperson and principal songwriter Jasamine White-Gluz's insatiable desire to grow. The Montréal-based project began a decade ago as e-mail-traded riffs; subsequent albums showcased a penchant for delay-saturated jangle, industrial distortion, and sludgey drones over disco beats. White-Gluz, feeling too reliant on her primary instrument, ditched the guitars and detoured to modular electronica for a 2018 EP composed with Sonic Boom (Spacemen 3's Peter Kember). For No Joy's first full length in five years, White-Gluz took what she learned from synthesis, reincorporated guitars, and produced an album that is not a departure from No Joy's early shoegaze, but a stylistically omnivorous expansion that ekes into trip hop, trance and nu-metal. Motherhood is the culmination of years composing outside of her comfort zone, and a return to DIY recording with a leveled-up expertise in production. Touring with genre-divergent artists has honed the band's comfortably multifarious sound; No Joy picked up post-hardcore fans on the road with Quicksand, and ambient techno fans on gigs with Baths. InchAs long as people are open minded about music, they can hear different things,Inch explains White-Gluz, InchMaybe because there are a lot of layers.Inch InchA lot of layersInch may be an understatement. Lead single InchBirthmarkInch combines the '90s dance rock of Republica with phasing fuzz à la Deftones' brand of loud-quiet-loud. InchDream RatsInch (featuring White-Gluz's sister, Alissa, of deathcore supergroup Arch Enemy) manages to cram synth choir, blast beats, cowboy leads, and signal-jammed shredding into a radio-friendly three and a half minutes. InchNothing Will HurtInch melds detuned arpeggios, Berlin school synths, slapped bass, and seemingly infinite vocal facets. Throughout are loving nostalgic nods to the records White-G

Southern California psychedelic savages Joy have signed to Tee Pee! The sound of Joy has been described as 'a spaced-out sonic groove-ride' and 'outer reach freak out,' but that hyperbole alone doesn't do justice to the group's measured mode of attack. Joy puts a premium on establishing both structure and dynamics, it's kaleidoscopic flurry and full-throttle riffage is anchored by both subtle detail and surprising textural depth. Prepare to fall UNDER THE SPELL OF JOY! Features special appearances by guest musicians Nik Turner (Hawkwind) and Parker Griggs (Radio Moscow)! Album Tracks 1. Unter the Spell 2. Miles Away 3. Confusion 4. Evil 5. One More Time 6. Driving Me Insane 7. Death Hymn Blues 8. Back to the Sun