Review Summary: Reinventing the wheel, they think.
Beyond the Wizard’s Sleeve came of no hype, to no welcome and got no reception. And yet, their debut album is a wonderfully crafted pop odyssey that manages to reach into every stylistic direction imaginable and yet stay cohesive. But somehow, in spite of all the obviously ambitious instrumental, melodic and atmospheric moves, the band just doesn’t seem to care, whether or not they are at all known. Everything on here seems to be just casually thrown at you with no regard as to whether you like it or not. It’s just a collection of songs someone thought might sound well together. It’s a background music that steals the forefront.
What is astonishing about this record is just the sheer amount of production techniques that seem to be exchanged track to track, going from something slightly industrial, to ambient, to almost rock-y, to fully electronic or artsy. The calm and steady opener “Delicious Light” is followed by eccentric and hard-hitting “Iron Age”, which pretty much forces you to like it with its repeated chants “IRON AGE, IRON AGE!”
But the album doesn’t try to keep that slightly harsh nature for long, for the next track is “Creation”, absolutely beautiful, gentle and almost caressing with its sweetness and soft female vocals. A study in tenderness also conducts “Door to Tomorrow”, while “Diagram Girl” sounds more dizzied-out, while still holding a similar aesthetic.
And yet still, in spite of all of these seemingly absolutely different ways to go the album takes, the track “Black Crow” destroys all expectations as it reminds more of an overwhelming, explosive ballad layered with string sections. It’s an unexpectedly grand entry and a gorgeous track, even though melodically reminiscent of some middle-of-the-road Adele.
And while the first half of the album held that laid-back poppy atmosphere, the second half goes into more of a tense, dark and ambient direction. It might set some people off, considering that the band suddenly exchanged catchy, light-hearted tunes for some atmospheric relaxation sessions, but it has a certain charm to it nonetheless. But it still feels strange to have an array of moving jingles followed by a sudden cut from a meditative post-apocalyptic drama. But the overall album doesn’t suffer from it. In fact, it creates a certain musical stylistic narrative of a journey from light and breezy to sudden sorrow and loss in space. The feeling of detachment, but also bliss. The absolute solitude, but also sense of purpose. The slow decay, but also a soft bounce into the air and shouting from top of your lungs that joyous proclamation that all is complete and you are not afraid of anything anymore. It’s a freeing experience to say the least.
