While the wait was probably a little longer than both band and audience expected, X-Amounts provides a very natural continuation of last years History EP, further proving that Controller.Controller stand out in their ability to meld different genres at their own will. Those looking for a new set of ideas than those found on the EP might be best to put their wallet away, as these songs follow the same dark intensity and jerky rhythms, but this time allowing lead singer Nirmala Basnayake more space to develop her muscular baritone vocals. The most revealing and successful track would have to be "The Raw No, as it keeps the trademark nervous energy, but lowers the volume to give the vocals the best showcase for emotions usually hidden behind the squall of guitars. While that may not fulfil fans who yearn for the past heaviness, that lot should check out album closer "Magnetic Strip for one of the more developed and successful pieces of music that will get the kids dancing, all the while looking warily over their shoulders. While not as jaw-dropping as their EP, those who look to Controller.Controller for an effortless fill of sinister guitars and sweaty beats will not be disappointed.
Its been almost a year and a half since your debut EP appeared. Why the wait? Nirmala: Touring, really. I had constantly bemoaned the fact it had been a year and a half and someone said "You know a lot of bands take a year and a half to put out a record. When I said that to a kid at a show he replied, "Yeah, big bands! [laughs] I know, I know, were not U2, but, it comes down to the same reasons as a big band, which is touring and, in opposition to what a big band might face, money. We didnt want to have a record that was constrained by a budget, like we record and record and when the money runs out, lets work with what we have. That just seemed so depressing.
Does the "X in the title refer to a math equation, i.e. the variable? It meant this idea of "X of being an unknown and a variable, and, even though we dont know whats going to happen, because its a variable, we can try to control it. You can make "X what you want it to be and thats kind of hopeful to us, because, as lost as we might feel and as undetermined as the future might be, you still can determine it.
(Paper Bag)Its been almost a year and a half since your debut EP appeared. Why the wait? Nirmala: Touring, really. I had constantly bemoaned the fact it had been a year and a half and someone said "You know a lot of bands take a year and a half to put out a record. When I said that to a kid at a show he replied, "Yeah, big bands! [laughs] I know, I know, were not U2, but, it comes down to the same reasons as a big band, which is touring and, in opposition to what a big band might face, money. We didnt want to have a record that was constrained by a budget, like we record and record and when the money runs out, lets work with what we have. That just seemed so depressing.
Does the "X in the title refer to a math equation, i.e. the variable? It meant this idea of "X of being an unknown and a variable, and, even though we dont know whats going to happen, because its a variable, we can try to control it. You can make "X what you want it to be and thats kind of hopeful to us, because, as lost as we might feel and as undetermined as the future might be, you still can determine it.
