sleigh bells Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

Sleigh Bells “Texis”

sfilzen — Mon, 21 Feb 2022 18:11:34 +0000

Sleigh Bells “Texis” 2021. Torn Clean Records/Mom+Pop Music, on clear vinyl. Noisy experimental pop, Texis is duo Alexis Krauss’ and Derek Miller’s fifth album (the hype sticker on this record’s plastic sleeve weirdly says it’s their 6th record but literally every reputable website says it’s their 5th). I’ve been a Sleigh Bells fan since their first LP Treats (2010), blown away by their combination of a dense wall of hard electronica and killer beats that are overlaid with Krauss’ soaring and gorgeously angelic voice. I also really liked Reign of Terror (2012) and Bitter Rivals (2013) but while I enjoyed Jessica Rabbit OK I don’t think I’ve listened to it since 2016 when it came out. Texis, however, brings back some of the earlier excitement from their older releases. An Allmusic review describes their sound as “cheerleader metal” which is pretty perfect: sweet, poppy and infectious but also gritty, loud and dangerous. My top tracks from Texis are the lead track “Sweet 75,” “Locust Laced” (about which an NME review describes as “a crazed mash of go-go pop, torture-porn thrash metal and dubstep”), “Tennessee Tips” (“a barrage of ray gun synth-punk,” NME), “Red Flag Flies” and the album closer “Hummingbird Bomb” which is weird and excellent: light and fluttery with layers upon layers of intense/insane synth-rock explosions.

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Sleigh Bells “Jessica Rabbit”

sfilzen — Thu, 12 Jan 2017 17:13:46 +0000

Sleigh Bells “Jessica Rabbit” 2016. Torn Clean Records. I got this from Santa for Christmas (and by Santa I mean that I went to my favorite record store, bought it and wrapped it up for myself) and am just now getting a chance to spin it. Jessica Rabbit is Sleigh Bell’s fourth release and the band is one of my current favorite acts. I fell in love with their experimental noise pop after their first release, Treats, in 2010. I even follow vocalist Alexis Krauss on Instagram and her life seems, like, amazing – all cute dogs, hiking in majestic nature, singing like an angel. The band’s signature experiments with tension and contrast are demonstrated on Jessica Rabbit with Krauss’ celestial vocals backed by heavy rhythms, metal guitar rifts and dangerous anger (“Throw Me Down the Stairs” and “I Can’t Stand You Anymore” where Alexis roars “destructive a permanent embrace of oblivion bombs don’t compare to the trouble you bring me, I just can’t stand you anymore”). Sleigh Bells also channel their inner Cocteau Twins on “Torn Clean,” “Hyper Dark” and “Loyal For” with gossamer notes floating on ethereal waves of savage despair. Overall Jessica Rabbit feels more cohesive than their previous release, Bitter Rivals, which I enjoyed but tend to listen to only a few choice tracks rather than as a whole. I think this is their strongest album since Treats.

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