Follower
Dark Circles, 2024
9/10
The Chicago rockers Beastii return with 13 hard hitting yet very tuneful new songs that pull from a varied set of influences that includes Joy Division, Kate Bush and Devo.
“Justine’ starts the listen with Chris Lee’s thumping drums and Jen Dot’s fierce but melodic voice guiding the dance-punk ideas, and “The Limit” follows with scrappy guitar and bouncy bass that complement the soothing backing vocals.
Deeper into the listen, “Evil Eye” uses electronic drumming and a swirling atmosphere for the infectious mood that touches on post-punk, while “Sell Out” offers a calmer moment of spirited guitar via Jesse Fevvers that suits Dot’s heartfelt pipes.
“Into The Ground” arrives near the end, and embraces ambience with some psychedelic nods, and “Be Sweet” exits plenty of lively rock’n’roll flavor that’s harmonic and retro tinted, too.
A diverse body of work that touches on ‘60s surf, ‘80s post-punk and ‘90s grunge, if you’re a fan of The Buzzcocks, PJ Harvey or Wire, Beastii could be your new favorite band.
Travels well with: Danko Jones- Electric Sounds; Circlons- When Only The Music Is Pretty