Gabe Fulvimar's first record as Gap Dream in three years is confounding. After making his name pushing laid-back, slightly loony pop cuts on 2013's Shine Your Light, the Fullerton, California native has receded into the basement for three years and returned with This is Gap Dream, a record packed with dark, crackly lo-fi tracks.
This is Gap Dream's at its best when it doesn't take it itself too seriously. "College Music," the album's lead single and best song, is a summer steamer with a bit of darkness around the edges, playing like some perverted mixture of Suicide and Creedence Clearwater Revival. The next track, "24 Hour Token," continues the avant-garde barbecue music theme, pairing boogie-woogie chords with 'luded-out vocals to nail the endearing slacker archetype that Gap Dream so often uses to his advantage.
Unfortunately, there's a fine line between endearingly derelict and just plain lazy, and too many tracks on This is Gap Dream end before establishing themselves, or fail to deliver on promising elements. Nowhere is this more apparent than on "Golden Shoes," which features some interesting distorted guitar hooks but is rendered impotent by weak vocals and rushed production.
Like many slackers with a heart of gold, Fulvimar is full of interesting ideas on this record, but can't seem to put in the work to flesh them all out. No bother — we all need a wake up call to get off the couch from time to time.
(Burger Records)This is Gap Dream's at its best when it doesn't take it itself too seriously. "College Music," the album's lead single and best song, is a summer steamer with a bit of darkness around the edges, playing like some perverted mixture of Suicide and Creedence Clearwater Revival. The next track, "24 Hour Token," continues the avant-garde barbecue music theme, pairing boogie-woogie chords with 'luded-out vocals to nail the endearing slacker archetype that Gap Dream so often uses to his advantage.
Unfortunately, there's a fine line between endearingly derelict and just plain lazy, and too many tracks on This is Gap Dream end before establishing themselves, or fail to deliver on promising elements. Nowhere is this more apparent than on "Golden Shoes," which features some interesting distorted guitar hooks but is rendered impotent by weak vocals and rushed production.
Like many slackers with a heart of gold, Fulvimar is full of interesting ideas on this record, but can't seem to put in the work to flesh them all out. No bother — we all need a wake up call to get off the couch from time to time.