Love, Darla
Bar/None, 2025
10/10
If noise-rock, shoegaze sounds and bands like Sonic Youth or Blonde Redhead perk your ears up, well, you might want to acquaint yourself with the NYC quartet Laveda, whose 10 songs draw parallels to the noise and static of city life.
“Care” opens the listen with dissonance before the scrappy drumming from Joe Taurone enters the jagged and raw alt-rock that can retreat to calm, and “Cellphone” follows with bouncy bass and front woman Ali Genevich’s expressive pipes amid some post-punk flavor.
In the middle, “Strawberry” buzzes and swirls with a pounding yet melodic backdrop, while “Heaven” is a softer moment thanks to the pretty singing, floating harmonics and occasional gritty bouts.
Residing close to the end, “Bonehead” touches on dream-pop via its infectious energy and mesmerizing atmosphere, and “Lullaby” exits with an indeed intimate demeanor that’s radiant, a bit grungy at times and builds into an ebullient finish.
The multi-instrumentalists Genevich and Jacob Brooks started Laveda in 2018, and this is their 3rd album. In addition to Taurone’s drums, Dan Carr handles guitar and bass, and together they flesh out a masterpiece in the area of alt-rock, grunge, dream-pop and shoegaze that warrants a place in your collection.
Travels well with: Yellowjackets; The Ocean Blue- Davy Jones’ Locker