Crystal Stilts - Nature Noir

Crystal Stilts have never been shy of revealing their reverence for 80s post-punk, early indie pop and shoegaze. That, and their love for Sixties-style psychedelia has been evident since their 2008 debut, ‘Alight Of Night’, manifested as it has been by the fuzzy guitar lines and organs which permeate throughout the New York-based band’s sound.

And third full-length, ‘Nature Noir’, recalls their home city’s underground art movements of the 1960s. The quintet’s affinity for the era seems to pervade this album more than on previous ventures. Take opener ‘Spirit in Front of Me’: a lethargic, woozy journey into that hazy epoch. By ‘Future Folklore’, the band’s real intent is clear, as it takes obvious cues from The Velvet Underground, with its driving piano and lysergic, crunchy guitars.

The most evident changes between ‘Nature Noir’ and the band’s previous album, 2011’s ‘In Love With Oblivion’, comes with the slicker production values. While their past work has been effective in terms of (for want of a better term) ‘authenticity’ with what the band were attempting to create, here things sound a little less blurry. The lengthy instrumental freak-outs of yore are foregone in place of a more contemplative disposition. There’s even the addition of a string section in places. Brad Hargett’s vocals are still shrouded in reverb, however, and the band’s characteristic casual dissonance still present, only tighter and more refined.

Yes, this all indicates a lack of progression of sorts – ‘Nature Noir’ is very much Crystal Stilts sticking to their well-trodden formula, conforming as they are, essentially, to their own trademark sounds. But it’s also the sound of a band retaining the best of their identity: sharp melodies, steady drum fills and discordant synth still all underpin Brad’s sleepy, monotonic vocals (obscured, naturally, by layers of reverb). Add to that the embellished production, more varied instrumentation, expansive sounds and more cohesive vision, and that lack of so-called ‘progression’ is not necessarily a bad thing.