Type's genius is being able to defy convention yet remain a cohesive label. Every new signing seems to stretch the label's sonic limitations, but the artists themselves seem to be kindred spirits, and Fred Thomas, the man behind City Center, is no different. I'm not really even sure how to describe this one. It certainly has elements of albums you've heard recently by Panda Bear, El Guincho, and High Places, but it also has more traditional vocals reminiscient of Grizzly Bear. Is experimental indie rock a genre? City Center's debut album certainly makes a case for it. The charm of the record is to weave disparate sounds together, and this is no more apparent then at the heart of the record with "Bleed Blood" and "Cloud Center", two of the best (and weirdest) pop tunes you'll hear all year. Much credit has to be given to Animal Collective for bringing experimentalism back into pop, but City Center is showing it doesn't have to end there; there's a whole sonic universe to explore when you open up our ears to the potential of pop music, and City Center is piloting one of the best spaceships.

Style: Indielectronic, Experimental

RIYL: Panda Bear, High Places

Buy from Amazon  MySpace

Download: Bleed Blood

Tags See All Tags

2009  City Center  El Guincho  Experimental  Grizzly Bear  High Places  Indielectronic  Panda Bear  Type  onecaseman 

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