Times New Viking

In the six years they've been terrorizing equalizers, Columbus, OH's Times New Viking have had an impressive run, putting out five LPs and another two EPs with three labels. Dancer Equired finds them making a lateral label jump from Matador to Merge, having cut their teeth early on with lo-fi sanctuary Siltbreeze. While everyone's been waiting to see when, or if, they decide to finally go hi-fi, TNV have only taken baby steps with album number five, entering a studio for the first time. Most bands would indulge in the opportunity, but the trio have done the bare minimum to their scratchy production. Gone is the incessant hiss that made them a make-or-break band for most people, which automatically makes this their most accessible record yet. The hearty "Fuck Her Tears" and the organ-driven "Ways to Go" are some of the strongest songs they've written to date, but the bulk of Dancer Equired isn't quite as immediate as the hook-laden material of 2008's Rip It Off. Still, there's an airiness to songs like the '60s-leaning "California Roll" and "Want to Exist" that shows Times New Viking don't always need to be so brash and shrill. With Dancer Equired, Times New Viking say goodbye to shitgaze and hello to a brave new world.