Yuck – Glow and Behold

ARTIST: Yuck                   

TITLE:  Glow and Behold

YEAR RELEASED: 2013

CHART ACTION: None

SINGLES: Rebirth, Middle Sea, Lose My Breath

OTHER SONGS YOU MAY KNOW: Not any

LINEUP: Max Bloom, Mariko Doi, Jonny Rogoff

WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT: Second record from the shoe-gaze revivalist disappoints thanks to a lineup change.

SOME WORDS, PHRASES AND CLAUSES ABOUT THIS RECORD: Second albums are tough. Second albums after one of the leaders of the band bugs out are tougher. Yuck lost leader Daniel Blumberg right before they prepped the songs for this album, and while Max Bloom and Mariko Doi do adequate jobs on vocals, the songs….well…

There’s not anything horrible about them, but instead of adding something new and fresh to the shoegaze sounds they grew up on, it seems they’re content just to mimic them. They weren’t as edgy, either, so they really did sound like more of a tribute than an energetic successor.

Some tracks, like “Lose My Breath” shine like the old days, but as the record moves on, it become blander and duller, taking the album down with it.

NOTES & MINUTIAE: Daniel Blumberg went to record his own solo material, which finally saw the light of day this year.

IS THERE A DELUXE VERSION: No 

GRADE: C: The first half is decent. The second half puts me to sleep behind a wall of just-so distorted guitars. We don’t need that, really.

Yuck – Yuck

ARTIST: Yuck
TITLE: Yuck
YEAR RELEASED: 2011
CHART ACTION: None
SINGLES: Rubber, Georgia, Holding Out, Get Away, The Wall, Shook Down
OTHER SONGS YOU MAY KNOW: No, unless you have an outlet of British Indie music around these parts.
LINEUP: Max Bloom, Mariko Doi, Jonny Rogoff, Daniel Blumberg
WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT: UK indie band years for the days of shoegaze and distortion and makes an album that wouldn’t sound out of place in 1991.

SOME WORDS, PHRASES AND CLAUSES ABOUT THIS RECORD: It has been 20 some years since shoegaze, My Bloody Valentine, and the whole 90’s indie guitar rock scene, hasn’t it? Yuck definitely brings one back to that era with distorted guitars, hushed mixed down vocals, and song structures that allow for dynamic effects to take hold.

Feedback, squeals, and fuzz litter the record, and the vocals are the norm here. Sometimes they’re quiet and almost mellow – other times they’re loud and fuzzed out.

The band is also striking visually – with Doi cooly playing her bass behind shades, and Rogoff at times featuring a huge white-man’s afro. Still, the music’s the thing and this debut was quite promising, especially since guitar rock almost seems passe.

NOTES & MINUTIAE: This group grew out of the band Cajun Dance Party, which disbanded son after Bloom and Blumberg left.

IS THERE A DELUXE VERSION: Yes, a bonus EP is appended.

GRADE: A-: Sure, it’s a throwback to the 90’s, but it’s a good throwback. It’s really a love letter to shoegaze.