2023-06-28 07:00:05
(c) OK WAIT
Already on their entertaining first album “Well” they tried OK WAIT around the increasing explosion of any post-rock boundaries, prog, metal, noise included much deeper into the mix. This worked wonderfully and is now being expanded. While common post-concepts increasingly recede into the background, the band, which has shrunk to a trio, breaks down the last limitations and tries fresh approaches – in terms of heaviness and leisureliness. „Signal“ cleverly plays with different extremes.
The first harbinger “Horses” shows that a lot has changed here. While the structure and dramaturgy still meet post-expectations in places, a much more differentiated picture emerges later on. Strong distortion, noisy-metallic substructure and doomy darkness enliven. This heaviness actually comes up once more and once more, for example in the wacky “Switch”, which experiments with punk elements, whose noisy chic starts endless loops and finally conjures up a false finish with a monolithic finish on the parquet floor.
“Escape” already indicates as an opener that a lot is different here. The five-minute film has an incredibly nervous energy, riding on an oversized powder keg. In the end, OK WAIT even briefly drifts into Black Metal realms – an unexpected ending that you would expect from Phantom Winter, but really well done. With the overly long “Sirens” the trio pushes the musical possibilities to the limit, even attempting an almost traditional post-structure. Warm textures, raspy discharges, plus a shifted climax – a pleasing pop of color. The final “Deja Vu”, on the other hand, is just a short coda that ominously leaves all questions unanswered.
Skillfully OK WAIT break up their sound completely and hit the bull’s eye. Classic post-rock approaches are increasingly taking a back seat and are readily accepted if they venture into the foreground as an exception. The amplified noise parts in particular get “Signal” very well, expressing a certain danger and unpredictability. Several small and big surprises as well as strong, just slightly different songwriting – the courageous and at the same time more than logical step towards new shores has been more than successful.
Rating: 8/10
Available from: 06/30/2023
Available through: Golden Antenna Records (Broken Silence)
Facebook: www.facebook.com/okwait.band
Category: Magazin, Reviews
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#WAIT #Signal
