There has been a host of albums released over the summer, and due to the large amounts of music out there some go under the radar, and ‘Distances’ from Dragon Turtle is one that should be noted.
The album is a slow and soothing one, as it simply drifts from one song to another, as if they are all one whole song. ‘Narwale’ is a perfect way to open the album up as demands you to listen in the subtlest of ways.
‘Beard’ achieves the same goal as it continues to settle you down as if it’s a stress relief tape, however unlike a stress relief tape it manages to keep your attention. ‘Summer Drive’ introduces a sly violin which brings a nice feel to the song, and gives it something else to separate it from the others.
Sometimes these types of album don’t get enough credit because people assume it’s easy to make music like this. Those thoughts couldn’t further from the truth, as the structure and placing of each element is even harder because you have to remain subtle with it, but yet stay entertaining.
At times the band seem to slip into this somewhat psychedelic place because of the slow pace and ooo’s and ahh’s. This is best demonstrated on ‘Odaiba’ with the continuous strumming of the acoustic guitar and the atmospherics surrounding the whole song.
‘Arctic Orion’ is possibly the best on the album as it sums the band up within this whole song, as they have each of their qualities being displayed to their highest ability. It just slowly jangles along keeping that psychedelic undertone throughout it, which is helped along with the hazy vocals in the background.
One thing that may hold this album back is that it shows no real versatility, as the band steer clear of picking up the pace and keep everything slowly ticking over. Yet this serves its purpose as an album you have on in the background just lingering as you carry on with the rest of your day, which is never a bad thing.
Dragon turtles have done an excellent job on this album as it manages to stay above average throughout each song, which is an extremely hard thing to do. However there’s no real song that sticks in the mind and refuses to leave your head, which is perhaps is a quality the band will pick up as they continue to write songs.
Words By Alex Wise @al4563
Words For Music - New Music Reviews 