Review Summary: If there was ever a term such as experimental techno, this would be the time to use it.
Spastic, eclectic, original, energetic; these are all words that could be used to describe Crystal Castle's latest effort, "Crystal Castles," their self titled sophomore (or maybe debut? It gets hard to tell with all the EP's and singles bands release nowadays) album. The duo of Ethan Kath, who composes the music, and Alice Glass, the singer, manage to take what is essentially nintendo music to weird new levels where 8 bit synthesizers meet distorted electronica. This creates a new style of music that is at times extremely tense yet extremely listenable.
The album begins with what is one of their most "mainstream" songs, "Untrust Us." A pleasant mix of synthesizer, bass and what sounds like the reverse of a woman speaking a foreign language come together to create an aesthetic, welcoming environment. However, the second song is where Crystal Castles really comes together and the fun begins. Starting with a distorted bass line that sounds like Justice - lite, the song prominently features the bands main vocals - a glitchy female voice screaming with extreme urgency. It doesn't matter that you can't understand anything she's saying - it actually sounds good and goes well with the glitchy feel of the band and their songs. The next song, Crimewave, is a remix, but it maintains the feel of the album - complete with minimal high pitched 8 bit notes.
The party continues on "XXZXCUZX Me." Yeah, I don't know what that means either, but it doesn't matter - the song is a 5 hour dance party condensed into 2 minutes, with a tempo of like 200 beats per minute. Seriously, try to dance to this song and see how it feels to pull a muscle, maybe dislocate a bone. "Courtship Date" is another interesting song, and probably one you've already heard if you've ever listened to "Ayo Technology" by 50 Cent. It hasn't been confirmed, but it's most likely 50 Cent's producer heard this song and thought - that is so freaking cool, I am so gonna use that in my next song and nobody will care because it's just Crystal Castles. This definitely gives CC a lot of street cred. As a side note, this is definitely one of the highlights on the album, if not the best song. Even if you hate this album and want Crystal Castles to go back into the world where all techno duo's come from (Another side note: Why is all electronic music made with two people? Cases in point, Daft Punk, Justice, Ratatat, etc.), give this song a listen.
The next round of songs: "1991", "Vanished", "Knights", "Love and Caring," etc, all serve to end the album with a barrage of solid techno. "Vanished" feels like a nervous walk through haunted woods (with normal vocals!), "Knights" sounds like something an indie alien would listen to, and "Black Panther" sounds very close to becoming rave music, with slightly poppy vocals and an upbeat, danceable (to an extent) beat. The last song, "Tell Me What To Swallow" is a complete and utter departure from the rest of the album, and was probably put in for no other reason than to be different, or something. A very transcendental and harmonious, yet forgettable, song, the album is best listened to with the omission of this confusing track.
Taken as a whole, this is certainly one of the most original and venturous albums released in a while. Crystal Castles manage to not only create their own world of dissonant sound, but also to stay within the confines of that sound to create a solid body of tracks that work together. At first however, the tracks by themselves may seem weird and uninviting - and that's because they are weird. This will never fly in the mainstream world - but doesn't that make you that much cooler for listening and liking it?
