Fine Motor - Standing Wave LP

Fine Motor - Standing Wave LP 

Since their 2017 debut LP (also on Exotic Fever), the band has garnered comparisons to Built to Spill, the Breeders, and Yo La Tengo. Whereas their last album was sweeping, cinematic and moody, Standing Wave is poppier and more concise, showcasing the band’s restraint and nimble power-trio dynamics.

Thematically, the album delves into the struggle to cope in the present, subjected to the firehose of content bombarding the psyche. For example in “Build a Brain,” drummer and vocalist Casey Bell’s lyrics lament, “You poke a hole in the screen / and the light pours through / to open up your eyes / You want to build your own brain / but you get bored halfway through.”

“Movie”explores the difficulty of showing up, and the onus on the individual in a world of broken systems and too late capitalism: “Are you doing the right thing? / Or only using up air? / Are you doing the right thing? / Were you there? Do you care?” And while Standing Wave is a poppier departure from the band’s previous record, the pandemic-era
Phantom Power, an air of gloom prevails. But guitarist Chris Mays’s gem-like melodies hover like a hummingbird over each track, exploring countermelodies and offering glimpses of transcendence.

The arrangements are a return to form, focusing on piano, bass, guitar, and drums. However, the record shimmers with moments of psychedelia, for example a sitar melody played in reverse lends a 60s sensibility to an otherwise straight-forward production in “Headlights.” The album was mixed by the band’s pianist Dan Morse (who regularly contributes gear reviews to Tape Op: The Creative Music Recording Magazine) through the use of vintage-inspired gear, some of it home made.  The album was mastered by JJ Golden (Cate Le Bon, Neko Case, Built to Spill).