The latest record from Los Angeles rockers Bleached is sonically pleasing, yet ultimately unoriginal. The ten-song sophomore LP is all-around well composed, but throughout, Welcome the Worms feels like a monotonous rehashing of a sound that's been done before.
It has all the elements of a good record, but Worms is missing that special chemistry that elevates a tried and true sound somewhere new. The vocals are steady and harmonious, complemented by some wicked guitar riffs and solo fragments, which manage to salvage the album — "Sleepwalking," "Sour Candy" and "Hollywood, We Did It All Wrong" will definitely be on my longboard cruisin' playlist for summer — but elsewhere, and even in these highlights, there's often little to distinguish one track from another.
Bleached's alt-rock sound evokes a pop-influenced, shoegaze-Nirvana incarnate, with beautifully crafted tone and obvious musicianship, and this record would be great background music for a party or movie scene, but it does little to hold the listener's attention on its own.
(Dead Oceans)It has all the elements of a good record, but Worms is missing that special chemistry that elevates a tried and true sound somewhere new. The vocals are steady and harmonious, complemented by some wicked guitar riffs and solo fragments, which manage to salvage the album — "Sleepwalking," "Sour Candy" and "Hollywood, We Did It All Wrong" will definitely be on my longboard cruisin' playlist for summer — but elsewhere, and even in these highlights, there's often little to distinguish one track from another.
Bleached's alt-rock sound evokes a pop-influenced, shoegaze-Nirvana incarnate, with beautifully crafted tone and obvious musicianship, and this record would be great background music for a party or movie scene, but it does little to hold the listener's attention on its own.
