Andy sees the Reaper is an oddly charming underdog of a band. Maybe it is supposed to have an exclamation point at the end of the sentence. I don’t think so though. ‘Neck of the Woods’ is a shambling album. It takes its sweet time, often going through multiple suites within one song.
What makes it so interesting is just how many different styles it takes on within its 50 minutes. “Old Town” the opener begins with an ambient interlude before diving into jubilant pop that wouldn’t feel out of place on a Ben Folds Five song. This happens several times within the song, with each infectious pop segment slowing down in tempo.
‘Neck of the Woods’ gets very lo-fi. At times it goes right into smeared ambient territory, like on the unusual ‘that dirt pile’ which barely begins or ends really. Fragments of songs can be found in these ambient sections, such as ‘BathQueen’ which transforms into a nimble groove halfway through the song. On ‘dreamt memory’ they even have a surprisingly tender violin, making it one of the highlights of the album. So they pretty much cover all bases on this album.
The melodies are bizarre. Lyrically it is cryptic, nearly nonsensical at times. I’m reminded more than a few times of Elephant6 Collective’s strange offerings, particularly Olivia Tremor Control’s otherworldly explorations. While Andy sees the Reaper is still in its early stages, its ambition is unusual. Glad there are parts of Canada embracing this weird sort of approach. Hopefully Andy sees the Reaper will explain the meaning of their name on their next album.
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