![]() Synths and sequencers give way to massive drums and a chorus-drenched guitar line akin to the Cure or Cocteau Twins, while Eiger works through his disillusionment, leaning into a soaring rock-radio chorus that feels like a genuine breakthrough. It’s present on “Rain So Hard,” where a few moments of miscommunication leave Eiger distraught about a breakup, and his frustration continues on “She’s on Fire,” an anthemic single that doubles as the album’s emotional peak. Read as a dismissive exchange between acquaintances at a party, it’s the kind of line that might seem better suited for a pithy 1975 cut, but Eiger’s earnest inflection lends it a wide-eyed charm.Ī world-weary sadness persists in spite of these occasional glimmers of humor. “I heard you write about culture/What’s that mean?/Is it sort of like everything?,” Eiger sings, voice rising from a soft whisper to a raspy shout. A dense assemblage of synth pads and arpeggios provide a sturdy foundation for Eiger and Woodman’s voices on “Rain So Hard,” as loose drums and a quivering guitar tone swell to enormous heights in the hook. ![]() The result is some of the sharpest, most clear-eyed songwriting to date.ĭespite the Day-Glo exterior, Pure Music largely operates in a lyrical mode born out of the group’s time as a more conventional guitar-driven project. ![]() But where the previous release was consciously divided between its synth-pop experiments and riff-driven alt-rock singles, Pure Music blends the two approaches, as vocalists Issac Eiger and Fiona Woodman sing about the search for inspiration during an extended period of uncertainty. Yet Pure Music, their first full-length release since No Light in Heaven, doesn’t feel all that far removed from its predecessor its 10 tracks are built from the same synth pads, drum beats, and narrative structures as before. ![]() The two cities’ seemed to collide on their output as Philadelphia emerged as the regional capital of indie, emo, the “ new wave of American shoegaze,” acts like the Dare, Frost Children, and Blaketheman1000 have come to occupy an adjacent place in downtown New York-all while sharing bills with Strange Ranger and contributing club-ready remixes to the expanded edition of No Light in Heaven.Īll of this has brought new attention to the project and left Strange Ranger at a fascinating turning point. As pandemic restrictions lifted, the group continued to chase this adventurous spirit with glossy big-beat singles and a steady live presence in their adopted homes of New York and Philadelphia. ![]()
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