FRICTION NYC

This city has undergone a complete transformation in the last couple of days. The trees have started to bloom and vibrancy has returned to the streets. It’s like the whole city has come out of hibernation and life has been exhaled into its veins again. Restaurants, bars, and cafes are packed with patrons that spill out onto the sidewalks, while people young and old stroll around the streets enjoying the gorgeous weather. Even the corner deli’s have changed; matchstick blinds now shield fruit, flowers, and plants that line their outer walls replacing the clear plastic weather proofing that was in place just a few weeks ago.

With this vibrancy comes new music, deep from the underbelly of Brooklyn. Star Destroyer, the debut from Brooklyn-based Alex Delivery is out today (April 24th) on Jagjaguwar. The quintet consisting of Nik Bozic, Marika Kandelaki, Robert Lombardo, Colin Ryan and Yegang Yoo have been hard at work on their debut for the last two years. On Star Destroyer, the band takes ingredients from krautrock, experimental electronic, and space rock and mixes them into an unearthly art-rock stew.

The six-song album opens with the distorted metal on metal shrieks of the sprawling 10-minute long, “Komad.” Backing female vocal melodies peek their way through the electronic distortion, as a half-spoken/half-yelled male voice goes on about “the questions of the age.” The backing melody continues through the metallic noise until the song segues and the shrieks shift into more of a beat as the song itself undergoes a transformation. Noise gives way to rhythmic krautrock arrangements and the song chugs along this way until the beat again gives way to metallic shrieks, ending in a similar fashion to the way it began.

The record is a complex and confusing first listen; a myriad of instruments, loops, layers, and sounds happening all at once bombard your ears. It takes a handful of listens and time to fully digest the album. Different elements begin to peek out from the multitude of layers and you’re taken on sonic excursions of the band’s choosing. Given these excursions, Alex Delivery is truly at their best when they draw out their melodies and loops to no end - it feels like they could go on and on for days.

Pick up a copy of Star Destroyer and stream the whole album via Jagjaguwar. The band is now on tour with Frog Eyes, check their MySpace page for more dates.

Alex Delivery  ”Komad”