Drag City
Sun Araw has been at the forefront of the whole lo-fi scene for a while now. Fortunately he has never fallen into “bedroom pop” territory as that would be boring. His use of old junky equipment has created a back-to-the-future kind of quality that isn’t easily described. While his 2010 release On Patrol sounded like warbly police detective soundtrack music The Inner Treaty sounds like a classic pop song played backwards under water. Opening track “Out Of Town” sounds as if a radio is being lowered into the deepest parts of the ocean.
Wonky keyboards zigzag through the tracks like they are crashing the party but the party is completely off its rocker so it isn’t easily noticed. The beats are wacky and near impossible to dance to. Bass lines get into a groove but easily become lost. “Treaty” starts off innocently enough with a minimal beat but soon the synths bust in to throw you off. It’s a zonked-out surprise at every turn. The vocals are muddled up as well as though being spoken through a CB Radio. Sure it sounds like a complete disaster but it’s actually the perfect mess of sound. Sun Araw is making new clutter out of old junk and it’s pretty damn good.
