Creating an awkwardly clever blend of experimental and indie-rock, Mellowdrone's new album "Box" is unexpectedly fresh.
It would be incorrect to define Mellowdrone's sound as relaxing. The music abruptly escalates from sedate ambient to genuine rock. Although each song's cathartic ingenuity may not be peaceful, it is gratifying.
Such gratification can be attributed to the deliberate changes between strange rhythms throughout the album. Songs begin mid-riff, change key and speed up and slow down at delightfully inopportune times.
Lead singer Scott Ellis's voice is reminiscent of David Byrne and Beck, as his voice and the music are a strange but fitting pair.
Just like the music, Ellis' vocals vary in speed and volume. His voice will begin mimicking the music, and then lose rhythm completely, as though he is talking mid-song. The result is very similar to Byrne from Talking Heads and his windy, unstable pitch vocals.
Adding to the strangeness of the project, Mellowdrone's lyrics are serious and uncomfortable in all the right ways. In "Fashionably Uninvited," the lyrics break from a developing story when Ellis asks, "Excuse me, is my rant taking too long? Is it getting in the way of this lovely song?"
Later on in the album, the lyrics lose any cohesion except rhyme in "Limb to Limb."
"Losing green that must have been/ Through the shield in the space/ Forget the check I'll get it/ My last one won't regret it," Ellis sings.
Initially, it seems the strange quality of "Box" is a sign of another amateur band prematurely brought to light, but could also be an indication of deliberate and intelligent music.
Mellowdrone has developed a sound worth listening to, which is more than most of the music being produced today.
"Box" is the band's first LP, coming out March 7. It's worth checking out.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
