Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of June 30th-July 6th, 2014:
Dichotomy - Subterranean
01. Subterranean
02. Tony Montana
03. Brand New
04. Sleepwalk
05. It Comes And Goes
06. Save The Frame
07. Railways
08. Cinder Blocks
09. June Gloom
10. Switch
11. Iscoceles
12. Vial
I decided to check out Dichotomy's album Subterranean for a couple of reasons. First off, I'm friend of a friend a member of the band and, seeing as how the record is starting to gain some legit traction, the least I could do is spend some time with it. Second, after spending the past couple of weeks with shimmering indie rock (The Starfolk, Rogue Valley), it was time to switch it up.
In that regard, Subterranean definitely delivered. Coming into the week I knew that the album would be a mixture of live instruments & computerized flourishes, but I wasn't quite prepared for the way Subterranean plays out. The first half of the album skews a bit heavier than I'm a fan of. Most of the album's vocals turn up in this first half and, in conjunction with some aggressive drums/guitar work, they imply somebody who first got into music as a teenager via 93X (no great sin, by the way. I got into music via 93.7 The Edge. Just looking for a comparable here.).
However, the second half of the album is where Dichotomy really plays to their strengths. The vocals are scaled way back and the aggressiveness of the songs, while still present, aren't nearly as constant. Tracks like "Cinder Blocks" & "Switch" show a band with a real grasp of pacing. Each song breathes, allowing the beats, pianos, and wayward guitar lines their time to shine. There's a lot of nice work being done on Subterranean's second half. Hopefully it's a harbinger of things to come from Dichotomy.
If you'd like to check out Subterranean for yourself head over to Dichotomy's Bandcamp page where the album is available as a "Name Your Price" download.
