The Fat Angel Sings

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First single from Weirdo Shrine, the new Ty Segall-produced sophomore album by Seattle surf-rock group La Luz, out August 7th on Hardly Art records. What makes Weirdo Shrine interesting is that all this existential dread is wrapped up in classic-sounding surf rock, topped with enough “ooohhhs”, “aaahhhs”, and vocal harmonies to fill your girl group quota for an entire year. Lead singer and guitarist Shana Cleveland tosses out bright, airy guitar riffs, tinged with just the right amount of reverb, as easy as breathing. But the surfer girl guise is a front.

Nowhere is this more apparent than the ballad, “I’ll Be True”. Cleveland croons, “No one else treats me like you do/ And I’ll be true to you/ Just as long as you want me to,” while keyboardist Alice Sandahl tries to wrestle the good name of organ solos from the hands of Ray Manzarek. But the lingering effect of the song is not the declaration of loyalty, it’s the minor chord progression that blends with the ladies’ descending voices. It begs the question: If the love in the song is so pure and innocent then why does it come tinged with such eeriness?

La Luz recorded It’s Alive in the back of their friend’s trailer. For Weirdo Shrine, producer Ty Segall constructed a makeshift studio out of an old surfboard factory. At first, this tactic can come across almost like a cheap gimmick, a soundbite for press releases. But once you realize Segall also chose to keep a persistent hissing overlay on the entire record (it’s hard to ignore once you hear it)—the occasional, lingering odd note or glitch will also tend to appear during the transitions between tracks—his methods become less a cute anecdote, and more a way to keep the group firmly grounded in their DIY roots. The ladies might have perfect pitch, but this is not an album for cleaning up mistakes.

It’s frustrating that the record doesn’t fully convey the energy of La Luz’s live shows, where the band members will crowd surf and request the audience make space for a line dance à la “Soul Train”. But if you choose to focus on La Luz’s doo-wop harmonizing, then you’re only looking at the frilly, pink bow that tops the whole package. The undercurrent of darkness in La Luz’s music is what makes their work so fierce and intelligent. You could blink and miss their sneaky, underhanded way of slipping unease into their cheerful-sounding songs. Which is why you should give them more of your attention.