MUSIC REVIEW: GEOGRAPHER - 'MYTH'

Synth-Driven Second Album Puts Dream-Pop Sensibilities on the Map

By: Jesse Livingston

February 23, 2012

(Modern Art Records) Geographer seems determined to bring back Synth Rock — and more power to them. Many recent bands have shown a love for the sounds of the 1980s, but few have really pushed the envelope in terms of what they want to do with those sounds. Geographer's new album, Myth, has an atmosphere all its own, filled with blended synth and guitar textures that chart new territory.

After the great New Wave boom of the '80s, many bands turned against Synth Rock and steeped themselves in the heavier, rougher sound of Grunge. Synth Rock itself fractured into several movements. Electro, with its robotic energy, was great for dancing. “Electronic” or “Techno” can be broadly defined, and certainly contains a lot of exciting and creative stuff. Now we have Chillwave, with its spacey fathoms of mystery. However, none of these genres are actual Synth Rock.

Myth follows in the tradition of musicians like Talk Talk and New Order — still one of the best bands of all time. It folds layers of electronic textures into guitar-and-drum arrangements to produce grand and melancholy songs. In many ways, it's reminiscent of last year's excellent Hurry Up, We're Dreaming by M83. It also recalls elements of Synth Rock standard-bearers The Killers, although without the wry humor.

Main vocalist Michael Deni has a sweet, operatic style that hovers and weaves through the instrumentation like some kind of alien bird. It wouldn't be a surprise to learn that he's been influenced by Andy Bell -- the redoubtable singer of Erasure —another all-time champion. Deni's use of vocal looping as ambience is especially prominent in the spooky “Kaleidoscope.”

Many of the beats are played live by drummer Brian Ostreicher, but sampled beats play a large role as well. Nathan Blaz adds some lovely cello to quite a few of the songs, in addition to playing synth parts. The two met at the Berklee College of Music. They found Deni playing open-mic nights at a local club when they moved to San Francisco.

Tone ranges from joyfully upbeat -- “The Myth of Youth” — to ghostly and sad — “The Boulder.” Some songs combine the two energies into a powerful halfway-state, such as “Shell Beach,” named for the elusive paradise of memory in Alex Proyas' cult classic Dark City. This was the trick that New Order pulled off so well: to make a song sound intimate and otherworldly at the same time. It was largely due to the juxtaposition of Bernard Sumner's childlike lyrics and unpolished vocals with Peter Hook's watery basslines. Geographer probably falls a bit more on the otherworldly side because of Deni's supernatural vocal timbre; however, many of the best moments come when he's balanced by harsh guitar.

Myth is Geographer's second full-length, and it seems to embody a sound that's both considered and experimental. The trio knows where they want to go with their music; it's somewhere cloudy, spacious, and only half-mapped. They may not sound quite like the Synth Rock bands of old, but they've got the same pioneering spirit that drove New Wave to dizzying heights of originality.

Standout Tracks: "Life of Crime," "Kaleidescope," "Blinders," "Shell Beach"

For Fans of: New Order, The Killers, M83, Antony and the Johnsons