Pinkshinyultrablast - Everything Else Matters (Album Review)

 

Pinkshinyultrablast - Everything Else Matters 

(2015)


My copy: 2015 limited repress on clear vinyl with orange an black splatter by Club AC30 and Shelflife Records.


Everything Else Matters came a full six years after Pinkshinyultrablast’s debut EP in 2009. Hailing from St. Petersberg, Russia, the band brings a unique perspective on modern dream-pop and shoegaze sounds. This debut is easily one of the most effective combinations of deep guitar atmosphere and pop music produced to date. 

A nearly psychedelic drone buzzes patiently behind a tapestry of female vocals on the introductory track “Wish We Were.” The divine layering is like a dawn chorus of sweet tones as the song begins to expand and mix in additional drum loops. The bass leads the album into its core sound, with live drums crashing into the mix alongside the echoing guitars. Their favorite rhythmic style is a pulsing four on the floor though it is done so well with many detailed melodies that the songs all feel different enough. There are also occasionally sharp tempo changes such as in the first track, where the bass resets the song with a more complex riff. “Holy Forest” is a sweet romp through indie-rock with clean, interlocking guitar licks that create a nice contrast against the dense verse sections. While almost every melody is swirling about in reverb, it is controlled in such a fashion that the aesthetic is only elevated - these are talented performers that also specialize heavily in the ethereal. 

The bass leads the way on “Glitter” where the veil of reverb soon reemerges. Though the songs here are much gentler than their debut EP, they still get heavy as demonstrated by the crunchy, distorted second-half of “Glitter” that leads into a much more chaotic reprisal of the chorus. The layered, glitchy vocals on “Metamorphosis” foreshadow their eventual trek deeper into electronic synth music, but here searing tremolo guitars keep their sound firmly rooted between Astrobrite (from whom they got their name) and early Swirlies. There are also highly danceable qualities in the drumming, frequently bouncing from double-time hi-hat to excited tom rolls. “Umi” is the gem of the shorter pop songs, putting a spotlight on their highly interesting guitar tones. There is an obvious layer of reverb, though the guitars are also somewhat percussive, almost sounding like echoed wind chimes - giving them a regal and airy signature tone. “Umi” contains the catchiest vocal melodies in the chorus as the progression passes through a brief hint of melancholy; the guitars also play with feedback more here. 

Bass shines again in the first half of “Land’s End” before tremolo walls are erected like monuments to the original purveyors of shoegaze. The guitar then snaps the song with a bouncy, delayed riff as the drums descend into half-time jamming. “Ravestar Supreme” has the bass subdued to a bubbly reinforcement of the kick drum, putting a heightened emphasis on the ghostly vocals. They build up a tremendous amount of energy with a final buildup only to release into the exceptional closer that is “Marigold.” The final track starts out mid-tempo, moving leisurely through sustained vocals, simple, pulsing rhythms and cool, breezy guitar strums. A short feedback drone foreshadows the latter half of the track before the drums pick up again at a sharper pace, devolving to powerful slams in unison with the other instruments. The track at last slips away into a cavernous assembly of droning feedback and synth, painting their longest ambient backdrop yet, to great success. 

Everything Else Matters feels like a proper love letter to the shoegazing and dream-pop styles, though not by means of overtly copying earlier acts. Yes, there are moments that could be compared to some of the popular acts of the 90s, but Pinkshinyultrablast have carved out a unique sound that is totally enveloping and awe-inspiring. This record has a personality of its own: it is sweet, mysterious, grand and most important, sonically adventurous. All this and we’ve yet to talk about the production, which manages to perfectly balance the warmth of the elaborate bass melodies with the often cold, jangled guitar. And at the center, while almost entirely obscured, is a vocal performance that ties the beauty and mystique together in a lovely bow. Sure, it could afford to change up the tones a bit or experiment with structure more, but Everything Else Matters is still an ideal shoegaze release for the modern world.

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