Songs From The Ancient Age

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Boasting former members of The Brian Jonestown Massacre and The Warlocks, the Los Angeles quintet Spindrift plays a collaged take on shoegazing and soundtrack-inspired indie rock, where samples are played alongside standard rock instrumentation. <i>Songs from the Ancient Age</i> starts with vocalist Kirpatrick Thomas whisper-singing over a Beck-inspired strut, making “Want Me” a sultry tone-setter. “Beauty” downshifts into a retro rocker that oozes sex appeal, with David Bowie–sounding vocals crooning over '60s guitar tones and a sinister Anton Newcomb–sounding take on garage rock. “Diamonds” makes good use of analog tape backmasking for a bygone psychedelic effect, but the distorted Moogs, plodding rhythms, and distant reverberated vocals make this track both innovative and haunting. Thomas’ glam-punk vocal approach (à la Lux Interior of The Cramps) on “Inhuman Behavior” saves the song from succumbing to a period-specific throwback style. The cinematic-sounding “Red Reflection” hints at the Ennio Morricone–influenced direction that Spindrift would take with 2011’s <i>Classic Soundtracks Vol. 1</i>.

via Apple Music