Dylan Fair
Staff Writer
Following the success of their debut album “Nouns,” art punk duo No Age takes their next important musical step by releasing an impressive sophomore album entitled “Everything in Between.” This release is more mature and subdued than previous releases.
The band only consists of two members, Ryan Randall on guitar and Dean Allen Spunt on drums. Randall primarily focuses on bringing creative rhythms to his music, letting lyrics take a backseat. His strong vocals compliment Spunt’s chaotic drumbeats.
It is difficult to accurately pinpoint what genre No Age has chosen to explore on “Everything in Between.” The song “Glitter” is simultaneously loud and melodic. “Common Heat,” on the other hand, is a much more traditional and straightforward rock track.
What separates No Age from the rest of the cluttered art-rock scene is their ability to communicate a variety of emotuions. Slow, repetitive ballads like“Life Prowler” exist side-by-side in their repetoire with chaotic and abstract uptempo songs like “Fever Dreaming.”
“Everything in Between” offers something enjoyable for all audiences. While no song on the album is perfect, the variety of tones and moods No Age encompasses keeps the harshest critics interested and entertained.
No Age can communicate lots of energy and emotion with sound instead of lyric. For instance, in “Depletion,” emotional screaming and powerful drums make listeners feel exactly the emotions that the lyrics tell of.
The tracks on “Everything in Between” aren’t uniformly stellar. “Common Heat,” with its repetitive and monotone drum line, attempts and fails to balance out the more abstract tracks on the album but instead is just forgettable. The instrumental intro, “Dusted,” provides nothing of substance to the album and should have been left out of the final cut.
“Everything in Between” has further established No Age as an emerging indie group. While No Age has experienced a small measure of commercial success since the album “Nouns” came out, it would be easy to assume No Age would move toward a more traditional, established sound. This new album is a promise that No Age is staying true to their original sound, at least for now.
Anyone who has listened to No Age in the past will not be disappointed by “Everything in Between.” It is available on iTunes, on vinyl and CD both online and in local music stores.
Entertainment editor Rose Graner contributed to this article.
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