Lushes is the compelling and moody brainchild of James Ardery and Joel Myers, and like their homophonic moniker (see: “luscious”), their debut album, What Am I Doing, is a collection of songs featuring styles and techniques that sound similar yet actually yield radical differences from track to track. In this respect, this experimental LP resists typical categorization and busies itself with pursuing more abstract pleasures – though it never strays too far into the ether, nor for too long. Instead, What Am I Doing takes only what it needs and gets going, and by doing this, by sampling and combining the best elements of post-hardcore, math rock, ambient, blues, et. al, Lushes provide their listeners with an experience that is surprising, diverse, and – despite such tinkering – cohesive. The album clocks in at just shy of 40 minutes, spread across seven artfully nuanced songs. Complexity, contradiction, and a knack for dynamics are the foundation of this perplexing release. Lushes thrive on bold contrasts, and their ability to encapsulate opposing themes of tension, mediation, absurdity, angst, and more within one album (sometimes within one song) is gripping. The listener is often coaxed into certain expectations or moods, only to be bamboozled by sonic misdirection. For every instance of hypnotic looping, a squelching guitar patiently waits its turn to blast you and your senses awake. There’s no telling how one song will evolve and vary itself from the next, and that’s what makes What Am I Doing’s replay value so high: you want to understand all of the intricacies, how and why you got from point A to point B, but since it flies by so fast and divergently there’s not enough time to digest everything one time around.
And so, the first of your many journeys begins with “Harsh,” a dreamy number that swells around a looped riff of guitar harmonics. Repetition like this is common throughout What Am I Doing, but it’s what Lushes use to build upon these constants, whether it’s intricately syncopated drum work or strategic feedback, that provides perpetual intrigue and keeps the listener from drifting off or away. Ardery’s vocals have a parallel resonance, falling somewhere between desperation and apathy, between giving in to one’s needs and giving up entirely. His delivery flirts ever so slightly with monotone, but in doing so he ensures that his tender or more visceral moments pack a substantial punch. Take, for example, “Traffic,” a restless piece that has Ardery bouncing between speak-singing, screaming, stuttering, and a form of droning that’s somehow bluesy and exciting – all before a bewildering and operatic female voice brings it to a haunting close.
In this way, Lushes refuse to let you settle. Just as you’re being lulled by the almost Radiohead-inspired tracks “One Right Word” and “Warm Contagion,” a huge, grunge-ridden attack like “Dead Girls” shows up and levels every modicum of calm. And speaking of big, “Feastin” is downright enormous. The 10-minute giant is an exemplary beaut, a showcase of both Lushes’s aesthetic and ambition. Reverb-soaked vocals, biting guitar, and subtle waves of synth establish the framework and pace early on, but it’s their eventual progression to the record’s most fragile space that makes it so captivating. As a strangely mumbled vocal loop begins ceaseless iterations, a delicate, wispy melody and piano accompaniment sneak on top of it, seemingly ready to break in an instant. It has the mesmerizing melancholy of a daydream, but just before you can get too engrained in escapist fantasy, the roller coaster ride ascends back to the height of where it all started and finishes in a strong, energizing display.
Analysis aside, the album is plain fun, and set at just the right length. It’s long enough that you can sit down and really dig in and appreciate the attention to detail, but it’s also short enough that you don’t feel overwhelmed or bored, which by and large encourages listeners to spin it again and again. In addition, there’s a modern playfulness that adds a gratifying relevance to the mix, with lyrics like “Have you seen the size of his feet / he’s gotta be bigger than me” and “You hang your head just like a zombie / I see you move real slow” that show even though their artistic efforts are serious, they don’t have to always take themselves seriously, and neither should you. While some may glaze over or misunderstand Lushes’s post-rock aims and penchant for ping-ponging back and forth between high and lowbrow modes of playing, What Am I Doing is currently one of the most interesting and original indie releases in 2014. Fresh and inimitable, this duo should make Brooklyn proud.
Review by Justin Davis. Follow him on Twitter @yeahjustindavis.
Pick up What Am I Doing from felte here.
