Brooklyn art collective Dead Leaf Echo present intense dream pop backed up with a solid concept.
Self-labelled as Nouveau Wave (not to be confused with any similarly named hairstyle or film movement), Thought & Language is an album of extremes. Boredom sets in quickly with some tracks, while others reward your patience with sonic bliss.
Tracks like ‘Memorytraces’ and ‘Flowerspeak’ throw late-‘80s/early-‘90s vibes around like they’re cool again, with hints of Depeche Mode combined with the abstraction of The Stone Roses.
The pace is picked up by ‘Dream of the Soft’ and ‘Kingmaker’, which also prove that shoegaze isn’t dead.
Little details command your attention, from the breathing in ‘Memory’ to the unexpected tempo increases in ‘Child.’ A particular aural pleasure is falling into the sublime chorus of ‘Heavensent’, infused with blended synth effects.
However, what makes the album enthralling is also what kills its variety. Tracks go from being succinct ideas to background noise, as all the elements blend together.
It’s impossible to comment on the lyrical themes, as at times there’s so much vocal reverb that the singer could be complaining about mowing the lawn and you’d never know.
While the vocal production is an aesthetic choice, it also undermines the songs for those unaware of the overarching lyrical concept. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s not a refreshing listen.
Thought & Language is an expansive soundscape, a snapshot of ordered chaos. It’s a wonderful evolution from their lo-fi EP Pale Fire, which lacked the complexity of arrangement that serves this LP so well.
