Berlin-based indie-rock outfit PICTURES releases “Repeater,” a track providing a foretaste of their forthcoming album, IT’s OK, slated to drop January 28, 2022, via Clouds Hill.
Talking about “Repeater,” guitarist/vocalist Maze Exler says, “The turmoil of melancholy bubbles out of the song like carbonic acid from a just-opened can of Coke. It is everywhere and yet not tangible. Everything is unreal and only with us for a moment and then already somewhere else.”
IT’S OK is the band’s third album, following on the heels of 2017’s Promise, 2018’s Hysteria, and their documentary film, Könige der Welt (We Were Kings), followed by sharing the stage with Paul Weller and The Kaiser Chiefs.
Made up of Maze Exler (vocals/guitar), Ole Fries (guitar), Markus Krieg (bass), and Michael Borwitzky (drums), PICTURES’ sound revolves around unpretentious, organic guitar music.
“Repeater” opens on gleaming guitars riding finessed percussion and a fat, rumbling bassline. Maze’s stylish voice, rich and evocative, imbues the lyrics with wisps of sadness as the shadows of the bassline juxtapose luminous, jangly accents. Hints of new wave merge with innovative indie rock, forming delicious polychromatic layers.
“Fall and winter / Make you sorry / You’re still walking on and on / Over bridges / Over water / You are walking / On and on … Is there anyone at all / No, no / Is there anyone at all / No, no.”
Vaguely reminiscent of the Beatles blended with The Killers, “Repeater” offers a diagonal rhythm that shifts to syncopated beats on the chorus, infusing the cadence with luscious rolling textures. On the solo section, shimmering guitars suffuse the tune with dazzling, sparkling coloration brimming with echoing, ringing tones
The combination of iridescent guitar leitmotifs, nuanced drums, and vibrating bassline yields posh washes of music tinged by retro suggestions.
With “Repeater,” PICTURES rolls out alluring sonic colors atop a delectably sophisticated rhythm, all crowned by deluxe vocals.
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