Countrypunk 2122
It is a rare occasion indeed for an album to stagger me, even dumbfound me, so much that I have to collect myself for a week straight. Suffice to say, this week’s review took all of my skill and energy, and will still not be adequate enough to describe the experience.
3D Country
Geese
Indie Rock / Alt-Country
Geese are a New York indie rock and post-punk band who released their first album just two years ago. And while Projector had its charm, it was still very much a playbook dark dance-punk record with a hint of psychedelia—something that a LOT of bands were into following the success of Interpol and Have a Nice Life.
When promoting (just) their second album, Geese liked to imagine 3D Country as a sort-of concept album about a heartbroken cowboy from the future who drops too much acid. And, oh my god, is that a spot on description.
Having never heard Geese before, nor with any idea of what to expect considering this album’s buzz and crazy/funny artwork, I can honestly say that, this must be a devil-handshake combination of The Doors, The Allman Brothers, T. Rex, Steely Dan, The Jesus Lizard, Toadies, and Beck. Having run through every emotion and every combination of thoughts, and traversed many a memory, I have never heard anything quite like this.
Sure, black midi is out there somewhere assaulting people’s idea of what song structure is, but can you honestly tell me those albums are enjoyable? They’re more like exercises in Juilliard-level music theory than anything actually… you know, fun.
“2122” kicks the album with an almost pop-punk vocal delivery, before a cacophony of angular guitars and polyrhythm drums kick in, dropping in and out for each verse. The song becomes a wild ride: breakdowns between turn into jam affairs, and after one verse in particular the band explodes in an wild party of percussion and smashed guitars; before suddenly, sharply returning to the original groove.
“3D Country” and “Cowboy Nudes” are much closer to their names, very country-fried with twanging guitars, and simple drums. Here, Cameron Winter’s lyrics begin to take a more coherent, if a bit silly, shape. As his delivery is…unique, to say the least, evoking Warren Zevon at his most eccentric, while, in “3D Country,” discussing the incredibly dark topic of continuing on after a loved one has taken their own life: “The day the cowboy cried and I gave up on love / You gave up on light, so I began my second life.” Then “Cowboy Nudes” is the lightener, a western folk-rock ditty complete with back-up singers, with Winter singing about life getting to a point where it’s actually better. A sitar kicks in in the second verse, and the line about the tumbleweed…pure genius.
“I See Myself” is a classic, heavy love song, backed by hand-played percussion and an electric piano that recalls the best of 70’s lounge rock mixed with Prince. The chorus of “I see myself in you,” is made extra potent with Winter’s Mick Jagger-esque shouted delivery combining forces with the return of powerful back-up singers. If this came out in 1979, it would have been as popular as “Escape”
If “2122” wasn’t enough of a litmus test for whether this album is for everyone, here comes “Undoer,” a seven-minute barrage of experimenting styles. It begins innocently enough, an alluring bass line propels this jazzy number, breaking only to allow a mess of percussion break through. Until, that is, the chorus, when Winter belts out “IT WAS ALLL YOOOUUU!” and the music switches to a progressive rock combination of detuned guitars and erratic drum fills. By the end, the song sounds as if it’s literally falling down stairs, Winter screaming incoherently into the din. This end is perfectly, and I mean, perfectly, transitions into “Crusades,” which is just the swingingest two-step song I ever done heard. I mean, I just love, love, love this song, as perfect for strutting down the street or dancing in the living room as it is for your nearest honky-tonk. It also contains some of Winter’s very best lyrics such as, “the devil hides in the innocent places,” “men die but the devil is ageless,” and the last lines “I am the wind to the limitless sailor / I am the compass to the lost and the bygone / Casting light on every faraway neighbor / I take your hand and go so far beyond.” The break after the first chorus, where in a hushed, comforting tone he tells us, “and I will take your side every time,” before the song rips back open again is perfection.
And so, what can possibly be said about “Mysterious Love.” Here Geese do their best grunge and 90’s alt-rock take, making wish again that Pearl Jam would have just kept going with the experimental, weird shit they were doing on Vitalogy. It starts hard, with loud, distortion-soaked guitars, and drums hit with such ferocity you’d swear they were breaking the skins. The thunderous riff that kick in as Winter sings, “this love is my only window / I will be the airbag / TWENTY POUNDS OF GLASS IN MY EYE!!!” is the heaviest and most explosive on the album. This then contrasts with the lush, almost hypnotic ending half of the song, complete with gorgeous vocal harmonies, almost beautiful enough to make you forget the unsettling refrain, “some people are alone forever,” repeated until the words have either sunk in or become nonsense.
Geese have created an album that is so mind-blowingly versatile, while maintaining their own style and giving their own twists to their influences, without those influences overwhelming the writing or becoming overly nostalgic. If I could force everyone to listen to 3D Country, I would. In the modern era of rock (if it even really exists anymore), this is a paragon of how to play what you want without compromise and deliver both artistically and popularly.
I cannot wait to listen to this album again.
