Posted: by The Alt Editing Staff
A reoccurring critique of the new wave of modern shoegaze is that it’s become boring and stale. Many see it as a lot of people doing the same thing, reciting the same dreary tones and groaning nu-metal influences, trying to chase a trend instead of doing whatever sparks magic in them, and leaving the whole genre oversaturated. If you puncture the surface though, it’s pretty easy to see that this isn’t the case. There are plenty of people doing their own thing within the boundaries and frontiers of shoegaze, taking inspiration from and infusing a vast array of emotions through elements of folk, electronic, or punk.
With their new record Moths Strapped to Each Other’s Backs, the followup to 2023’s Amateur Heartthrob, the Brooklyn-based band Bedridden does what calls to them. The songs on this album feel like blown out, summery indie rock jaunts. From the beginning the energy on this record is immense. One manic riff coated in fuzz crushes right into the next one. Single “Chainsaw” has parts that sound like someone strapped magnets to the teeth of a chainsaw and then let them whirr over the magnets of a guitar’s pickups. Little melodies suspend themselves over this, shifting as quickly as everything moving around them. The song never lets itself settle, moving into one part and then quickly switching over to the next one not long after, throwing you into one swell of energy and whipping you into another right before it can simmer.
The record continues like this through most of its runtime. It’s unrelenting. From the opening “Gummy” through “Snare,” the high energy of the record is sustained throughout that entire stretch of songs, never coming down. Each track has something exciting, and it’s an exhilarating experience where it feels like you need to be listening in a car to keep up with the album’s momentum. Unrelenting can be kind of burdensome though. Occasional coasts in the music where it brings you back down are necessary. It allows one to marinate in the feeling of a song and makes thrashing highs hit even harder. Constant highs and rapid velocity can become monotonous if it’s not balanced. A lot of Moths Strapped to Each Other’s Backs feels like it’s pummeling you, and sometimes a breather is needed.
That doesn’t take away from the individual greatness of a lot of these songs though. “Philadelphia, Get Me Through” continues much of the perpetual motion having this spiraling effect, like it’s burning up during takeoff, before crashing at the end in burning riffs. The track “Mainstage” is quick and punchy, played in so much high gain that the distortion feels almost airy. Again, the song’s quick interchanging phrases is what gives this record its vigor.
It’s the perfect vehicle for frontperson Jack Riley to release all his indignancies. Through his voice that wails over the constant current of Moths Strapped to Each Other’s Backs, he sings about all his petty grievances that he has held towards the world. These include getting into pointless, self-destructive fights with people from meaningless grudges, or crashing out over doomed relationships with others while still hopelessly trying to hold them together. Or like on “Chainsaw,” which gives the album much of its imagery, where he gets needlessly pissed off over his roommates’ obsession with a lamp. On the record, Riley deconstructs and pulls apart a lot of these negative feedback loops that come from thought spirals centered around feeling unwelcomed, or unloved, or like you’re not good enough for this world. That self-loathing is like moths flying towards the light just to get torched over and over again.
Moving through the end of the record, the immense constant rapid pace of the record finally tapers off. “Uno” is a lot more relaxed and stretched out. “Bonehead” is darker than anything else on the album, with some gothic tones, somewhat akin to the kind of music that Riley was making while living in New Orleans. The closing track “Ring Size” acts as the moment of reflection back onto the rest of Moths Strapped to Each Other’s Backs with much calmer undercurrents that aren’t crunched closely together. On the song, Riley contemplates settling down with the idea of marriage but dismisses it all at the end with the thought that “I’m still hanging out.” Even though it acts as a repudiation, the thought lingering there isn’t a denial. He’s still trying to find a balance of peacefulness in the rapid uncertainty of living.
Disappointing / Average / Good / Great / Phenomenal
Moths Strapped to Each Other’s Backs is out now.
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John Glab | @glabglabglab_
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