“Wild Guess” is a gorgeous assembly of curiosity, with tracks like “Sea or War” propelling doggedly forward like a six-foot wave of anticipation, and the funky undulating intrigue of “Backup Plan” flecked with Will Krulak’s biting riffs accenting a uniquely asymmetrical drum pattern from Zack James. “Dial Tone” lives in the realm of punky noise rock while maintaining a healthy amount of eccentricity from the unsettling wailing guitar to Nina Cates’s persistently frustrated tone venting about chasing connections. The playful “How We Ball” brings a bit of Blondie into the mix and, even in Cates’s delivery, some Le Tigre but it maintains that Robber Robber individuality with its zoomed-out, unpredictable song structure.
Naming their debut “Wild Guess” is an expert way to categorize their sound. It’s not stuck in a generic box but instead is an experiment in blending noises that feel correct in the world of Robber Robber. The chaos is the formula. Similar to how they named themselves, Robber Robber’s music follows a similar impulse-driven energy—Cate and James looking for things that excites them and pushes their shared musical expertise forward.
The aptly titled “Wild Guess” is an enthralling exercise of tension and release driven, first and foremost, by the pair’s interest in playing around with what it means to relieve that tension and what happens when you don’t.
The Fat Angel Sings 