Alright, I'll confess - I completely missed the boat on the Atlanta, Georgia based experimental post punk band The Algiers. Back in June, when their debut eponymous album was released, I planned thoroughly on giving it a listen. It instantly garnered critical acclaim, and for quite awhile was one of the most talk about albums out. Unfortunately, due to my distaste for streaming music, and my inability to find the actual album anywhere, I was forced to wait out the release, and it wasn't until recently that I actually got around to checking it out.
Going into the album, my expectations were obviously sky high, expecting the four piece's blend of post-punk and gospel to create a fantastic and unique sound. Even with that mind-set, I was blown away on first listen. The fact that The Algiers managed to live up to the hype surrounding them was a surprise on it's own right, but their sound simply left me pleased, the groovy post-punk inspired guitar riffs, the raw gospel vocals, and of course the experimental edge, all came together and for lack of better words; just flowed.
The album isn't perfect, as it can at times rely a little bit too much on lead singer Franklin Fischer's powerful vocal delivery, but that is just something that comes alongside the large gospel influence. The production style is also a little too clean for my liking, as far as the genre goes. I think the band could have benefited from using a little bit more of a lo-fi style that would really help lift the vocal contributions even more, and give it that raw feeling that helps really drive a post-punk album. The clean production style is, in my opinion at least, an attempt at making a much more marketable and accessible sound, which I do believe they succeeded with.
With all things consider, the flaws are, for the most part few and far between. While there are things that I would have don differently, the execution was still fantastic. Perhaps the Algiers won't be a band for everyone, but take the time to listen to a track like the soulful Old Girl,or the more upbeat Black Eunuch which has a very clear work song vibe to it. The work song atmosphere featured on that track is a running theme throughout the album, as the catchiness of the choruses, and the melody in the music often times carries that certain familiarity with it.
To sum up The Algiers, it's a fantastic debut album that certainly will be on plenty of year end lists when the conversation of best album of 2015 comes up. The overall product that the group delivered is one that leaves me beyond excited to see what their future holds, and certainly makes me glad that I did end up checking it out.
Rating: A
Favorite Tracks: Remains, Claudette, Blood, Old Girl, Irony.Utility.Pretext, But She Was Not Flying, Black Eunuch, Untilted
Least Favorite Tracks: None
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