Monday, December 8, 2008

Borrowed Review: MoHa!

MoHa!
One-Way Ticket to Candyland
[2008, Rune Grammofon]

Full review HERE
No new reviews to re-post this week, but I should have one up soon. Instead, I want to draw your attention to a band that's been dominating my itunes plays all day. I know very little about them, other than that fellow TMT reviewer gave this album a 4.5/5. I'm typically not into noise rock, but I do love really chaotic, technical drumming, and MoHa! delivers. They blend spastic drums, dissonant guitar chords, and harsh electronic noise (broken synths, noise generators, etc). I have to disagree with part of Keith's assessment of One-Way Ticket to Candyland, though; there are melodies in here, but they typically only span three to five notes, and are very repetetive. While this probably sounds very unappealing on paper (and it may be difficult to approach if you're not accustomed at all to this kind of thing), it translates to a very enthralling, exciting listen. Some tracks are spazzy and all over the place, others are brooding and drone-based.
My favorite track as of now is "Prog-o-rama". True to its (tongue-in-cheek) title, its full of start/stop rhythms, time signature shifts, heavy syncopation, etc. Ultimately, this (two piece) band reminds me of HEALTH, if that band's members were technically proficient with their instruments, instead of relying on histrionics and violent feedback. Highly Recommended, especially if you like: Lightning Bolt, Health, Scorch Trio, Hella, Parts & Labor, noise music

Listen!

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