Cacophonous, intense music that bludgeons the listener into a state of ecstasy. Coming on like a hallucination inducing punch from their titular Sonny Liston, Elapse-O pass from the thrill of the initial hit into a disconcerted daze. That immediacy comes from the strident vocals, Songs About Fucking-esque drum machines and Fuck Off Riffs; the following disorientation from the Pita-like layers of textured noise and glorious attention to detail lavished on these songs.

Call ’em a noise band if you will- but where so many of that ilk wallow in an inhuman sludge, Elapse-O’s music glories in the intensities of experience. This is thrilling, vital music from the young UK underground.

Track List

  • 1. Sonny Liston (6.32)
  • 2. Golden Ships (5.12)
  • 3. Island (5.51)
  • 4. Mars (2.55)

Reviews

Never before have I heard the "noise rock" style usher in songs I would describe as beautiful, but Elapse-O seem to have figured out a way. Their debut EP somehow manages to inject beauty and soul in between feedback and noise, with post-punkesque vocals and drum machine loops adding even more flavor to each track, and never once sounding superfluous with their inclusion. It's amazing that I'm just hearing about this band now. Normally when an EP this succinct is made, its existence is heralded all over the blogs and Pitchfork before the CDR's are even burned. Credit has to go out to to Records on Ribs not only for the discovery of this band, but for releasing the music for free as is their mission. CDR's are made to order upon request. But don't let the low price tag fool you; this music is worth your time and your money.

The Music Lobby

A shimmery and bludgeoning shoegaze haze very much in the tradition of Suicide and Spaceman 3 and that my friends is never, ever a bad thing. Elapse-O's sonic turbulence isn't going to be to everyone's taste but then some people wouldn't know good music if it was slapping them in the face with a month old haddock. The album is short and sweet clocking in at twenty and half minutes and the lovely folks at Records On Ribs have made it available as a free download via their website. Personally though I reckon you should show some love and send them some cash for an actually, exists in the real world, copy. You won't regret it.

Wonderful Wooden Reasons

Strident, noisy music with post-punk influence in the best traditions of The Cure and Swans...Free music symbolizes four free experiments with noisy musical layers, chromatic vocal melody lines and bludgeon-like drum machines rhythms. These experiments aren’t listener-unfriendly because of its inner human nature. Elapse-O music isn’t ‘experimental sound merely for experimental sound’, but view on life through troubled glass of noise sound....It seems that Elapse-O is one from the best opening for me in this year.

Heathen Harvest

Like Sonic Youth in the 1980s and Liars today, Elapse-O are one of those bands capable of bringing outsiders unfamiliar to experimental music in. While it is far from radio friendly, it actually manages to be pleasant enough on the ear, and the best thing of all is you don’t get the feeling they are compromising what they are doing in the slightest to achieve this.

Incendiary Magazine

‘Sonny Liston’ it is which opens up the EP. Like an angry version of Sigue Sigue Sputnik’s ‘Love Missile F1-11′, huge drum beats and leering vocals mutate into a well-constructed mass of noise. ‘Golden Ships’ is, if anything, more confrontational than the opener; yet despite being dominated by distortion it is undeniably arresting. In the spirit of Jesus And Mary Chain, for each track, a tune always lurks within but Elapse-O give it a few kicks and punches to make it appear less pretty. ‘Island’ and Public Image Ltd.-soundalike ‘Mars’ continue this trend with a refreshing lack of subtlety.

Leonard's Lair

Creative Commons License

This release is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. Essentially, this means you can give it to your friends if you like, as long as you aren't charging for it.