Mae Shi

The sentiment here is great. Playing what they call "surprise music,” the Mae Shi are influenced by mix-tapes, mainstream and underground music, DIY and living for their city, Los Angeles. Squeezing in 33 tracks in 42 minutes, their goal for this album was to create something fun and exciting for only 120 dollars. But a band needs more than sentiment, especially the Mae Shi. A lot of this album is comprised of bits of noise and random screaming that sounds a lot like a barking dog. A big problem is that the tracks are too broken and sporadic to get comfortable with and everything is over before it can sink in. The instrumentation is sparse and at times, it sounds like they’re banging on pots and pans instead of a drum kit, and given this band’s quirkiness, maybe they are. By the end of the 33rd track, the feeling here is not so much that the album is weird, but instead just really annoying.