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The Crystal Castles’ stage act gets lost in translation.

Crystal Castles

Crystal Castles

Released on Nov 30, -0001

There’s a place for bands like the Toronto-based Crystal Castles. There’s a time for stamping your feet, clenching your fists and pounding out melodies that sound like Atari games. There’s a mindset I get into when the uber-anti minimalist in me wants every corner of its consciousness pounded on. Unfortunately, those places, times and instants are not in my headphones, right now, while I’m going about my life.

That’s not to say Crystal Castles isn’t good at what they do. Their debut self-titled album has been on the tips hipster-dance youth for at least the past year, and the duo (Ethan Kath & Alice Glass) has chocked it full of everything their fans fell in love with at the live shows: phrenetic synth-pop with raging vocals that hit like a hailstorm on a running ’67 Chevy.

However, it’s also the type of album that you want to see. The songs seem too much alike to form anything cohesive other than a blank white sheet and the vocals are so incomprehensible that they may as well be the wrinkles left after a tumble dry.

There are standout tracks. “Alice Practice” is the first and best use of a synthesizer effect that’s retro and futuristic, familiar and scarily odd, and is coupled with some of the most passion-filled singing this side of the soundboard. It’s said to be the highlight of the live show, as well.

The album soon descends into Ladytron-esque drum machine with mechanic singing. The entire Atari-style sound is one that still sounds good for the first few songs, but doesn’t last for me through an entire album.

As noted before, they are good at what they do. The album is solid, with an amount of consistency that makes me confident in letting it play straight through at a party. Their live show is supposed to be absolutely out of control, with a seemingly drug-addled Alice taking center stage while Ethan conducts a wild train ride through the heart of a dark basement party.

That may be the key to understanding this record. It seems like the type that you’d buy to remind you of the show when you discovered them. Remembering the way that you thought Alice’s eyes connected with yours while she howled, “Just because we don’t feel fresh/don’t mean we don’t feel death” and you pretended to know what she meant while jumping up and down and pumping fists to the space techno filling your ears… that’s a reason to listen.

High Point: The way the majority of the album makes me want to ride a bike really fast.

Low Point: “Tell Me What To Swallow” is the last track, and by the time it comes around, I’ve got no patience to give its ambience the attention it probably deserves.

Quick Point: 80’s Throwback Children Unite! The band’s name is a reference to She-Ra’s equivalent to Superman’s Fortress of solitude.

Posted by Mark Steffen on Mar 25, 2008 @ 12:00 am