Album Review

In 1998, Mercury Rev released the critically acclaimed Deserters’ Songs, a glisteningly perfect psychedelic album that saw the band bring its particular sound to new orchestrated heights. The record was a breakout hit in the UK and solidified Mercury Rev’s devoted following here in the US with its pop sensibilities and dreamy, uh, dreaminess. I know I listened to the album hundreds of times before it made its transition to the back of my CD books. September 11th, 2001, saw the group release its follow-up, and maybe history got in the way of my having noticed. Over the years, with digital replacing CDs and the long shifts in musical tastes that a decade will do to you, I had nearly forgotten Mercury Rev and that special brand of psychedelic rock they championed (alongside Flaming Lips) through the Clinton ‘90s.

But as it turns out, the Rev never stopped. In fact, with this month’s release of Snowflake Midnight, the band’s eighth studio album, it’s apparent that Mercury Rev has held steady to its course. With surprisingly little divergence, Snowflake Midnight is witness to a band that has crafted and populated its own little corner of the musical universe—a place where the tumult of stylistic changes that have characterized the 2000s so far can be completely ignored.

The album is often spare and clear, with flourishes of stripped-down electronica. But at the same time, it feels more expansive than the densely orchestrated Rev tunes of the ‘90s. The spacey dance-floor of “Snowflake in a Hot World,” for instance, feels so spare and bottomless it could give listeners vertigo. The repeated, mantra-like lyric—like many throughout the album—operates almost as a place-holder. As the music gets more complicated, as it reaches further out, at least a human voice is there to keep you from flipping out. The second track, “Butterfly’s Wing,” works in the same way. But here, a mechanical beat crosses paths with the quiet chirps of a string section. The beat, too, makes you think you’re wandering through the post-disco epilepsy of a mid-90s rave.

“Senses on Fire” is the first completely standout track here. A mix of glistening noise and party-chant beats, it’s hard not to think back longingly to the Stone Roses and ask yourself what they’d be up to if they had made it into the 21st century. “People are Unpredictable” is not only the first song with lyrics that change over time, it is also the first tune here that could be loosely labeled “rock.” There’s a prog-ish edge to the song as well, as it moves through several changes on its way to a coda that would make Tangerine Dream proud.

“Runaway Raindrop,” with its Phillip Glass style intro, is a perfectly great song in many ways. However the spoken-word bridge, reminiscent of a kind of watered-down KMFDM track, makes the song pain-reducingly skippable. This is the little time capsule that drags some of the greatness of the album down. But let’s not dwell on it. The Rev comes back with the elegiac trance of “Dream of a Young Girl as a Flower,” another dance-oriented tune that returns to the sweeping galactic mood we started with.

My favorite tune here is “Faraway from Cars.” If you’ve ever heard the imminently awesome band Marionette, the clapping here—as well as the build-up and slow-down nature of the song—will put a smile on your face.

Altogether, Snowflake Midnight is a mood album. It follows Mercury Rev to a particular point along their trajectory and features a very trance, dance-oriented style that seems happily out of place. I look forward to the official release date, as the band will be offering another full-length album—free to CD purchasers—titled Strange Attractor.

Snowflake Midnight and Strange Attractor will be released on September 30th on Yep Roc Records.

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