-=- SHGZ -=- * Shoegaze * Indie * Post-Rock * Grunge * Dream Pop * Psych-Rock * Ethereal * ARTIST..: Chain Wallet ALBUM...: No Ritual GENRE...: New Wave STYLE...: Dream Pop, Shoegaze, Indie Rock, Alternative Rock YEAR....: 2019 LABEL...: Jansen Records COUNTRY.: Norway PLACE...: Bergen ENCODER.: LAME 3.100 -V0 BITRATE.: 261 kbps avg QUALITY.: 44.1kHz / Joint Stereo SOURCE..: CD TRACKS..: 10 SIZE....: 59.77 MB URL..: http://www.facebook.com/chainwalletband/ - TRACKLIST 1 Lost Somewhere 3:29 2 Final Testament 3:30 3 Ride 3:14 4 Closer 3:00 5 What Everybody Else Could Find 3:13 6 Liminality 1:42 7 Knowing Eyes 3:14 8 No Ritual 3:44 9 World I Used To Call Mine 3:00 10 Inner Space 3:32 Total Playtime: 31:38 Bergen's Chain Wallet seemed to emerge from the ether with their debut album, an imaginative, continually reflective piece of dream pop. Matching shimmering guitars to that nagging sense of melancholy, the band reflected the influence of everyone from The Clean to Ride, Beach Fossils to Johnny Marr. New album 'No Ritual' finds the Norwegian group testing themselves further, adding fresh ideas in the process. Production comes from Matias Tellez, while the songwriting itself reflects a feeling of stasis or limbo. The title cut airs on Clash, and the dappled guitar effects seem to linger in mid-air, a zero-gravity effect that slumbers out of the stereo. An intriguing return, it's sonically beautiful, while retaining its secrets to the last. Tune in now. * A Post-Apocalyptic Dive Chain Wallet is the sound of dreamy mythologies presented in widescreen, while simultaneously nodding back to an era where everything was in four-by-three. Picking up where the hazy, melancholic and undeniably catchy debut left off, the band now returns with a lusher √ and at the same time, more eerie √ sound. While Chain Wallet's first album was dreamed up in their rainy hometown of Bergen, the sophomore effort No Ritual found them emerging to a small cabin on a remote beach in the southwest of Norway. Here, among surfers √ and while walking the beaches √ they found out what kind of album they were going to make. While you still can catch a glimpse of Mary Chain here or Johnny Marr there, Chain Wallet are really establishing their own musical identity with No Ritual. Playing an important part in expanding the band's sound on this record is Chiara Cavallari of the psychedelic shoegaze band FOAMMM. The guys say: "We had been wanting to collaborate with Chiara for a long time, and her ethereal presence is fortunately scattered all over the album." Both of Chain Wallet's albums have followed loose and murky storylines about a conflicted protagonist. Where the first album revolved around themes like unresolved ambition and attempts of letting go of the past, No Ritual finds our anti-hero in state of spiritual limbo, while reaching out and trying to establish new symbolic meanings. The album is a post-apocalyptic dive into the mythical life of the millennial mind. * Norwegian dream pop band Chain Wallet's debut album blew me away when I first heard it. Every track was so catchy, so good and it's an album I continue to listen to at least twice a week. Their follow-up is No Ritual and I can see this being another album I listen to for years to come. If there's one word I can say about this album is it's consistent. It's consistent with their debut album and that's great to me. Considering I thought their debut was pretty much flawless, the same can be said with No Ritual. The new album has some songs that feel darker and not as poppy as the first album. The first track "Lost Somewhere" is a good example of what to expect with No Ritual. The synth-y goodness is all still there, but the songs feel more layered, if that makes any sense. "Final Testament" is a track with a nice blend of pop and moodiness to it. The first song I heard from the album was their single "Ride" and it's everything I expected from the band. It's got a catchy chorus & riffs and I find myself singing "I want to ride!!!" over and over when I hear it. "Closer" is a slower-tempo song but a welcome change to the upbeat songs that fill up the album. It stands out to me because it's vastly different from the other tracks. There's a female guest vocalists on the track as well, Chiara Cavallari of the shoegaze band FOAMMM. I like a lot of female fronted dream/synth pop bands so it makes sense for her to guest sing on the track. I'm going to check out FOAMMM now because her voice sounds great. Chain Wallet should have more female guests on the album because it just fits. What I love about Chain Wallet is of course the vocals from Stian, but also the synthesizer and the guitars. The guitar playing from Christian has a Johnny Marr feel to it, and it really shins in a few songs this album. I particularly liked watching and hearing the guitars live as well. The guitar and synthesizer stand out in the next track "What Everybody Else Could Find." "Liminality" is an instrumental track that reminds me of Tron: Legacy in the beginning, but then feels like something out of Stranger Things. I think this would be another band that would be awesome at film & TV scores if they ever wanted to go that route. The title track "No Ritual" could be the best track on the album, but I certainly love "Ride" as well. Again, love the guitars on this song and the chorus is catchy as hell. Out of all the songs on the album, I find myself going back and listening to this one the most. It's the song that reminds me of the 80s the most, perhaps why I like it a lot. I thought it might be hard to top Chain Wallet's debut album but the band has come out with another killer album. Not a bad song on the album and each track offers up something different. I would say my only complaint is it feels too short but perhaps that's the intent? Keep the fans wanting more I guess. * Chain Wallet is the sound of dreamy mythologies presented in widescreen, while simultaneously nodding back to an era where everything was in four-by-three. Picking up where the hazy, melancholic and undeniably catchy debut left off, the band now returns with a lusher √ and at the same time, more eerie √ sound. While Chain Wallet's first album was dreamed up in their rainy hometown of Bergen, the sophomore effort No Ritual found them emerging to a small cabin on a remote beach in the southwest of Norway. Here, among surfers √ and while walking the beaches √ they found out what kind of album they were going to make. While you still can catch a glimpse of Mary Chain here or Johnny Marr there, Chain Wallet are really establishing their own musical identity with No Ritual. Playing an important part in expanding the band's sound on this record is Chiara Cavallari of the psychedelic shoegaze band FOAMMM. The guys say: "We had been wanting to collaborate with Chiara for a long time, and her ethereal presence is fortunately scattered all over the album." Both of Chain Wallet's albums have followed loose and murky storylines about a conflicted protagonist. Where the first album revolved around themes like unresolved ambition and attempts of letting go of the past, No Ritual finds our anti-hero in state of spiritual limbo, while reaching out and trying to establish new symbolic meanings. The album is a post-apocalyptic dive into the mythical life of the millennial mind. -=- SHGZ -=- P.S. ** Thanks *** *** BCC FNT IPC SSR *** *** For Knowing Where The Music Is At *** *** Props to CaHeSo, awesome Asian Indie/Shoegaze *** *** And to FANG/HOUND for supporting all the Indie lovers out there *** --===-- ********************* * NuHS we miss you! * *********************