Takes by the Ocean: The Awful Escapism Department — The Anthology

A welcome change from the siege perilous and other funerals for brat justice

Mdou Moctar (Photo by Cem Misirlioglu)

YES

Gouge Away, Deep Sage

Like Mannequin Pussy, the “singles” feel indebted to the sum when only heard in parts. I want the grunge and the hardcore and the shoegaze and the…Argument-era-Fugazi-meets-Lollapalooza-era Tool(?) all in one place so I can marvel at the mosaic effect (you try describing “Idealized”). Unlike Soul Glo or Drain or even Mannequin Pussy, you won’t quite memorize where the melodies are hiding so you can brave the mountain climb once again by knowing its resting places. Instead, they overlap with the one-note riffage and the more complex riffage alike to comprise the heartiest whole I’ve yet heard from the hard-alt ilk, unless we count Militarie Gun, who are pure pop for now people by comparison. Proving more listenable than pop is a Sonic Youth trick indeed. Maybe that’s because “A Welcome Change” looks to Leaves Turn Inside You and Murray Street when they need a change of pace. And Sonic Youth never rocked this hard — I’d class “The Sharpening” more with, oh, “Radio Friendly Unit Shifter.” Most memorable lyric: “I need space.”