Review Summary: Just sit, revisit fond memories of days past, and let this EP unravel your repressed emotions.
Recall the days of sitting on your backyard deck or lawn chairs and think of all the details that made you as complacent as the ladybug flying overhead. The sun rays beaming on your farmer's tan while your mother brings out a pitcher of lemonade. The faint breeze carrying the scent of the neighbor's pine and grill. The boombox off in the distance bringing a groovy, yet indistinguishable melody to your preadolescent ears. All this can be summed up with the multi-moniker Dayve Hawk's "Call And Response".
Hawk may be seemingly indecisive about what to call himself (Memory Cassette, Memory Tapes, Weird Tapes), but the sound and more importantly the feeling he puts forth is more focused. This short n' sweet little EP contends with its contemporaries efforts (Neon Indian, Washed Up...) but is slightly overlooked. This is Hawk's third disc under the Memory Cassette moniker, and he has no reason to slow down or speed up for that matter. The idea itself of nostalgic, personal, dreamy jams is in itself timeless. It transcends categorization, pretense, and even perhaps criticism. One gets lost in the brilliant landscape of euphoria and imagination.
As the third track "Asleep At A Party" begins, children's laughter is heard, not the sample that you have heard before that sounds forced and out of place, but one that brings back memories of your best friend's seventh birthday party, where everyone is ecstatic and nobody has feelings hurt for more than a mere minute. This timeless sound also brings back musical masterpieces. Hints of My Bloody Valentine's "Loveless" can be heard through the spacey dream-pop atmosphere. Big beats, industrial loops, and "faded out" shoegaze esque rhythms are diversely spread throughout the disc. The vocals are a mystery in and of themselves, the gender being unidentifiable and reminiscing of Stevie Nicks. The synthesizers melt your inhibitions and the underlying piano pounds in positive thinking. Not only is accessible due to calming instrumentation, but the chord progressions are as fresh as the midsummer night. It makes it all the more appealing that it is a one-man project and this helps with the cohesive ideas and pushed goals of one-mindedness. This humble soundtrack serves as a nice relaxer or just a subconscious thriller.
Memory Cassette does more than change the listener's perspective on heartfelt sounds, it takes you to a place of exploration, recollection, and hopefulness. Anyone seeking solace from the endless tides of reoccurring themes in today's or yesterday's unemotional backwash of a sound, look no further. Just sit, revisit fond memories of days past, and let this EP unravel your repressed emotions.
