REVIEW: Crypts’ self-titled debut album
The term “post rock” has been around for decades, but Crypts are a Seattle trio who don’t care that the place that they live in has been called Seattle Rock City. They are electronic music wizards who are proud of their keyboards, samplers, sequencers, and files, but they twist things in a way which shows that perhaps the incestuous way of their city’s passion for rock has seeped into their passion for creating some very wicked sounds.
Their self-titled album is less post-rock, and more post-apocalyptic, because when they create sounds that may sound happy and sappy, they layer it with warble and distort things to the point of where you’re not sure what you’re listening to. Within their songs, all of which are quite good, is also hints of minimalism, atmospheric soundtracks with those important incidental tracks, and even brief hints of industrial that is very nice to hear in 2012. Just as Crypts make an attempt in doing something that could be a dancefloor hit, they demolish the floor and tell everyone that it’s better if you go underground. If Seattle’s monorail system was able to go beyond the city limits, it would go into the soil instead of heading to Everett, Mountlake Terrace, or Issaquah. It is the soil where you will find roots, and while Crypts are meant to be post- something, these guys are very much in the present, and I’m thankful they are.
What do you think?