Weird Nightmare – Weird Nightmare (2022) [FLAC 24bit/44,1kHz]

Weird Nightmare – Weird Nightmare (2022)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 34:38 minutes | 411 MB | Genre: Rock
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sub Pop Records

Debut album by new, guitar-driven rock / power-pop project of Metz guitarist / singer Alex Edkins. Features performances by Loel Campbell (Wintersleep, Holy Fuck), Chad VanGaalen, Alicia Bognanno (Bully).

If you’re looking for a raw, sugary blast of distorted pop, look no further than Weird Nightmare. The debut album from Metz guitarist and vocalist Alex Edkins contains all of his main band’s bite with an unexpected, yet totally satisfying, sweetness. Imagine The Amps covering Big Star, or the gloriously hissy miniature epics of classic-era Guided by Voices combined with the bombast of Copper Blue- era Sugar—just tons of red-line distortion cut with the type of tunecraft that thrills the moment it hits your ears.Weird Nightmare is the “poppy” side project of Metz frontman Alex Edkins, and its debut album is very much the flip side of his punk-rock day job. Where Metz aggressively grinds, Weird Nightmare revels in the giddy sweetness and joy of early ’90s indie rock. Edkins has noted that Metz is “more about fighting against certain traditions in music; this was embracing them.” That includes everything from open D chords to cheerfully bouncing beats. (One thing both bands have in common: The music is meant to be cranked all the way up.) “Lusitania” is exultant, bobbing along like Guided By Voices channeling the Kinks. Edkins has said the song captures the spirit of the whole album: “Musically, my goal was to make songs that would make people feel good. This idea of waking up from a terrible dream or winter changing into spring. Momentary relief.” (Mission accomplished—and all the more impressive considering the song’s name is aligned with a luxury cruise liner tragically sunk in WWI.) The Pixies-ish “Wrecked” is the sound of pure abandon: like a summertime amusement park ride where you just have to throw up your arms and let the air-time velocity take you. Bonus points for Bully’s Alicia Bognanno joining the fun with her powerhouse vocals. “Darkroom” (which is apparently about fighting off bad habits) is full of whiplash guitar bends and a gleeful solo that definitely doesn’t worry about perfection, while “Nibs” is all about gloriously warped distortion and “Dream” slip-slides, like a big old car fishtailing over wet pavement. Hyper “Searching for You” sounds like the Pixies covering the Ramones, and that is an absolute compliment. “Oh No” veers closest to Metz, with psych-folk singer Chad VanGaalen guesting on the garage-punk churn. Seemingly spent by all that expended energy, the album takes a sharp left turn to close on “Holding Out,” seven dreamy minutes of a blissed-out comedown. – Shelly Ridenour

Tracklist:

1. Weird Nightmare – Searching for You (03:03)
2. Weird Nightmare – Nibs (02:58)
3. Weird Nightmare – Lusitania (03:06)
4. Weird Nightmare – Wrecked (feat. Bully) (03:39)
5. Weird Nightmare – Sunday Driver (03:29)
6. Weird Nightmare – Darkroom (02:44)
7. Weird Nightmare – Dream (03:38)
8. Weird Nightmare – Zebra Dance (01:05)
9. Weird Nightmare – Oh No (feat. Chad VanGaalen) (03:13)
10. Weird Nightmare – Holding Out (07:40)

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