As we find ourselves faced with impossible circumstances daily, normalising the grind of horror, it is only fair to ask the heavens for help. No reply is forthcoming though it does not stop @, the tech-titled but horridly elusive Google Search band asking across the five tracks of their latest EP. Are You There God? It’s Me, @ falls a few words short of being matched with the contemporary novel charting a sense of pride and development in moving on from the family home but there is a striking familiarity to this piece in making such actions a reality. Kick on and reach out to the skies for some hope of a response. When it does not come, seek the warmth of electronic production and new ventures. We must kill time before the big man meets us, after all.
These are not the janky tech experiences first expected, there is a relative lightness and frailty to this. Indietronica at its finest, the core flourish and bouts of strangled fear, the sinking feeling of opener Procession is a marvellously entertaining beginning. Hear the pangs of the drum grow louder, revel in the consequences it so clearly caters to. Vocal implementations and the sudden stop do not mean @ is out of steam but mean they have concluded all they wish to – even if it feels like there is plenty more for them to gauge. Those off-kilter tones continue Web Crawler, the constant hum of searching through the internet typecast as this dangerous and strange way of living. @ may not be wrong in their assessment.
Within these tracks is a sense of heavy guitar work, but not content with peddling the same riffs and shapes as their previous efforts, @ hopes to give it a tech-focused edge. Are You There God? It’s Me, @ works well because of its varied and intense approach to glitch pop and the looser feeling they can ascertain from using it. Contain the electronic, trance-like state @ find themselves possessed by. It is clear to hear why they were so moved by the sonic sounds they produce here though it does dive the jutting edges of Odor in the Court. Those medieval flickers and attempts at stunning with guitar creativity feel at odds with one another and rely too quickly on the flashy sci-fi spectacle which Are You There God? It’s Me, @ relies on.
Rightly so to some extent though as @ can use these whirrs and wonderful accompaniments to their advantage. Figure it all out with the drills and whines of EP closer Soul Hole. It is the grandeur of the screams within and the manipulation they experience, the slightly freakish distortion and repetition which is produced so nicely. Effective and clawing for the higher beings to make a response but neatly included and not at all grating. This is a harder mixture to fulfil than first thought, and @ is more than up to the task. Playing hell with style guides and your eardrums is always a treat, Are You There God? It’s Me, @ has a booming uniqueness to it which warrants a listen.
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