It may interest you that a pair of Rum Diary alumni (Daniel Mckenzie and Jon Fee) comprise part of the Shuteye Unison roster, but familiarity with their precursor band is largely irrelevant when surveying Shuteye’s agile indie-pop maneuvers and sophisticated songcraft. Sporting the vibrancy and texture of Aloha, the austere considerations of Death Cab for Cutie, and occasionally the elaborate, amped-out finesse of Silversun Pickups, Our Future Selves most invigorating moments like “Better Hallway Vision” and “Traffic Hymn” bristle and spark with an air of divinity while remaining firmly grounded.
- BIG TAKEOVER
- Hear Wax Media
Starting off the album with a bouncing bass line on “Be Kimble”, Shuteye Unison get the listeners attention immediately. While the opener slows down towards the end, the next song draws you back in with some slight electronic bleeps. Our Future Selves may not be the best release of the year, but it certainly makes quite an effort to be.
- Manual Dexterity music zine
San Francisco’s Shuteye Unison have come a long way from their post-punk daze. Here’s the title track from Our Future Selves that can best be described as a enigmatic dose of rock. Big word we know but it is what happens when music is distilled this well. You’ll be a fan if you like Silver Pick-ups or that Canadian Broken Social Scene. Awesome record.
- Review Stalker
4 Stars! San Francisco’s Shuteye Unison is a post-punk powerhouse of eclectic sound. Their astonishing sophomore effort Our Future Selves is like waking up from one dream into another. They toss you gently down the rabbit hole and out into the ether, leaving you drifting pleasantly from one surreal sound-scape to another. The band builds a complex and subtle architecture that you can walk around in. You can practically feel the fog flowing around your ankles. The album is at times atmospheric and introspective, allowing the imagination some elbow room, before abruptly closing in and grabbing the listener full force by the lapels, with well placed change ups and break outs. But don’t go thinking the entirety of this album is off in the clouds. There is concrete substance to be found and solid ground for you to put your feet on.
The band works well together, finding a great balance with a fairly average guitar-bass-drums instrumentation. The crunch and wail of the guitars are just the right temperature, hanging back expertly at key moments and then coming in with tidal wave ferocity. The bass is moody and solid, providing a sonic floor to contain the ups and downs of the sometimes-erratic guitar melodies. The drum lines act as a steady spinal cord, holding it all together and giving these songs perfect posture.
Aside from musical stability, the songs also demonstrate lyrical intelligence. From “Century M”, a song with a gradual build that rises to a crashing crescendo, the lyrics come in a slow pour: “In a cabin scene/With a floor of leaves/Under bats hanging above/Full of blood they sleep.” Delivered in a subdued voice that is almost a whisper, the vocals cause the listener to lean into the music, ears perked to decipher the code that is being written.
All in all, with their second album, Shuteye Unison has achieved a genuine triumph. There are no smoke and mirrors to be found here. This is the real thing.
- MUZIKREVIEW.COM
Shuteye Unison, Our Future Selves. "Post-rock" may be the preferred descriptor for anything that lacks traditional structure, but this sophomore effort from San Francisco's Shuteye Unison is as rock as it gets. Opener "Be Kimball" kicks off with eight bars of crunching guitars and two beats of a kick drum. It ends with one of those dreamy, soaring indie-pop outros. Singer Daniel Mckenzie has the same breathy cadence as Billy Corgan. It's wonderful.
- EAST BAY EXPRESS
Featuring a couple of guys from the Three Mile Pilot-esque The Rum Diary (GR Transmission 49), this band could probably get by on post rock instrumentals if it wanted to. Their epic brand of guitar-driven rock takes its time building up in intensity, piling on riff after rift to construct mountains out of deserts, skyscrapers out of suburbs. On top of that are whispered vocals that recall but don't copy Seam's mellower songs. Interestingly enough, the first song "Be Kimball" begins with Guitar Hero-ready riffs and serious pounding of the skins, as it to prove that they can rock if they want to before taking it down and never going back.
- GIANT ROBOT
On their second full album, the San Francisco-based quartet Shuteye Unison perform a kind of spiky, romantic/post-punk-flavored indie rock that is at once part of the continuum and a little outside it. Our Future Selves doesn't break down any doors for originality but, just by following the paths it does, avoids the kind of overdriven pomp that so many other guitar-bass-drums lineups seem to want to embrace in their race to become the new Supertramp. Vocals are softly sung rather than bellowed or pronounced from the heights, there are calmly beautiful moments like the feedback and piano break on the opening "Be Kimball," and overall, Our Future Selves feels less like an overbearing romp than a coolly, gently confident ensemble effort. Those previously mentioned vocals are in many ways the secret weapon throughout the album. By sweetly gliding or soaring with the music instead of overpowering it, it lets the music itself step forward, as when the band builds to a full rush on "Better Hallway Vision" to a great stop-start conclusion. It's not understated diffidence or twee rambling by any means; the full-bodied punch of the title track, not to mention some of the guitar's push, betrays a love of U2 clearly enough, but it's rather nice to hear a band that avoids Coldplay's soul-crushingly dreary riffs on that style in favor of a richer, sweeter texture and more immediate rhythmic interest. The overlaid drums on "Swear Words" (credit to Jake Krohn's seasoned, deft performances there and throughout), slow rising guitar swells on "Portable Rome," and the propulsive shoegaze-tinged drive of "Century M" are three further examples of many of this album's best moments.
- ALL MUSIC
Recalling Silversun Pickups, the Jealous Sound and maybe even a dash of Sonic Youth circa Daydream Nation, San Francisco, Calif.’s Shuteye Unison has crafted a record at once expansive and catchy. Our Future Selves deals in ambience and mood, and while the lengthy song structures might be a turnoff for some, generally the record succeeds in crafting a dreamy soundscape. This is quality 3 a.m. music.
Initially, opener “Be Kimball” comes off as misleading. The track begins with a muscular guitar line, driving bass and thundering drums. It certainly makes sense as an opening number – those handclaps and snarling guitary bits are infectious – but the tune starts to shift around the two-and-a-half-minute mark. Shimmering piano transforms the song into something more ethereal, which better represents that album as a whole.
Shuteye Unison certainly has grander aspirations, as evidenced by all the auxiliary percussion and children’s choirs, but the group tempers those ideas with white noise, resulting in a “something for everyone” approach.” Still, it’s hard to call a song like “Our Future Selves” uncommercial. That track fits nicely into the SSPU mold a la “Little Lover’s So Polite” with mid-tempo rhythms and soft melodies.
The rest of the album gently follows a quiet/loud dynamic that’s much more subtle compared to, say, Mogwai. The shifts almost sneak up on the listener. One moment you’re rocking out to “Better Hallway Vision,” the next you’re tripping balls on “Swear Words.” Our Future Selves could at times use more bite and focus, but at only 46 minutes it couldn’t be called self-indulgent. Plus, the record strikes a nice compromise between melody and noise, structure and mood.
- PunkNews.org
Talk about evolution. Since we last heard from the folks in Shuteye Unison things have obviously changed quite a bit. And fortunately all of the changes are positive. We liked the band's last release, but it didn't prepare us for Our Future Selves. This album is more melodic...much more focused...and overall much more accessible. These songs are basically pop but they are certainly not formulaic. This album could be compared in some ways to The New Pornographers but that would only give a slight indication of where these folks are coming from. We were initially impressed that the handwritten note included in the package was scrawled on a library card (definitely added a nifty touch)...but the songs are what ultimately blew us away this time. Housed in the traditional eco-friendly Parks & Recreation brown cover, Our Future Selves is an exceptionally rewarding album chock full of smart modern pop. Our favorite tracks include "Be Kimball," "Swear Words," "War Feathers," and "Century M." An easy and obvious TOP PICK.
- BabySue.com
The first time I hit play on Our Future Selves, the new album from Shuteye Unison, what immediately struck me about the opening riff of opening track "Be Kimball" was that it was way different from how the band's last album started. The opening track of that album — the band's self-titled debut LP — creeps in slowly with a wall of warm ambient noise. Back then I thought that was a boldly arty way to start an album. Like any good artist, the band seems to be deliberately confounding expectations with the opening of their new album.
But don't worry — if you're a fan of Shuteye Unison's dreamy indie pop with a decidedly post rock bent, you're still going to love Our Future Selves. The album is stylistically very similar to its predecessor, except for that opening riff.
Which isn't to say there's been no evolution from album to album. Shuteye Unison has broadened their sound somewhat, incorporating what sounds like an a cappella childrens' choir at the end of "Portable Rome," for instance. And there also seems to be something looser about the overall feel. The songs are less tautly arranged, more atmospheric, but without sacrificing any of the catchier hooks that made their debut album so likely to get stuck in your brain.
Take standout track "Century M" for instance. They've been playing this song live for a while, and I swear the Mogwai-esque bassline has been stuck in my brain ever since I first heard it. Thing is, the entire song is not only anchored on that bassline, but the band is more or less content to just let the bass breathe, inhabiting a space totally unto itself, continually asserting itself amid a guitar line that never really vies for your attention but adds just the right amount of harmony and noise to make the song feel complete. Tracks like this show that the band is really coming into its own, and should be one to watch going forward.
- Wiretap Music
The name Shuteye Unison is one that was instantly familiar to me for some reason, and what that reason was I couldn't place. That was, until, PP forwarded me the press-info email and in that email I discovered he had reviewed their debut a little over a year ago. This quintet from San Francisco didn't quite seem to wow him, but seeing as it was a debut it's probable they just had a few kinks to work out of their sound. This album is the result of that progression, and while it's not quite kink-free, it's an album worth your time.
"Our Future Selves" has a strong indie influence, acts like Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service are the two I recognised, particularly in the relaxed vocals, while the musicianship generally derives from a clear love of post-rock ala The Appleseed Cast, all put together with lo-fi production. Pigeon-holing them to either genre would be redundant, as in songs they drift from an uptempo fuzzy-indie sound and into serene atmospherics, such as opener "Be Kimball"; it starts the album off energetically with foot-tapping indie rock guitar work, but about halfway through it fades and allows piano work to drift in as the vocals take a more airy turn to create a dreamy soundscape. That transition isn't rushed - the song lasts over seven minutes, and even as the song is dying down they don't hurry it, oozing every last drop out of the dreamy soundscape.
Even though that transition is sudden, you cannot accuse Shuteye Unison of forcing it. Maybe that's a result of their sound or their ability, but it flows naturally, elating the listener in the process. SU write those bright melodies and uplifting songs excellently, for it's not easy to marry catchy choruses and lofty atmospherics with the end result being both enchanting and infectious. However, the flow of this is interupted by darker tracks - "War Feathers" and "Portable Rome" I'm looking at you two especially - where did the happy melodies go? And why have those atmospherics been replaced by heavier, even noisy, musicianship? Luckily, "Century M" is on hand to see to it that the album ends in the style it should, with a seven-minute build up of post-rock meets indie goodness - there's even a This Will Destroy You-esque guitar-line underneath that urges the song forward.
For the most part, Shuteye Unison really have a handle on what they're doing, and what they're doing is both inventive and interesting. Fans of both indie and post-rock will be drawn to this, and even if you think you're a fan of one but not the other it's likely you'll still enjoy "Our Future Selves".
- Rockfreaks.net
It’s fitting that Shuteye Unison’s killer new disc arrived on my desk as the autumn rains began their torrential attack. Two years ago, I included Shuteye’s amazing self-titled debut in my Autumn Listening Guide. Then, the delicate, dreamy, indy pop reminded me of a pensive walking through a changing colorful landscape. But this autumn is different. Winds are blowing, rain is pounding. And seeming to match that, Our Future Selves finds Shuteye Unison taking a far more aggressive stance. Crunchy guitars kick off “Be Kimball,” with a violent sense of foreboding, bringing in a charging post-punk, post-Fugazi groove far and away from the introspective self-titled debut. But rest assured, Shuteye Unison aren’t content to leave it there. Our Future Selves acts like a reconnaissance mission though the badlands of indy pop. At times lush and atmospheric, at times dense and mean, and at times sprawling and droning, Our Future Selves is and album for listening. Don’t think about putting this one on by the fire and ignoring it while you play monopoly. Our Future Selves demands your attention. It grabs your inner ear, your brain, and your imagination and insists you go on the journey with them. What waits around the next corner is a mystery until you actually approach it, and still, it seems to change with each listen. A remarkable album.
- The Ripple Effect
Harmonious, up-tempo, and fun are a few words that come to mind when listening to Shuteye Unison’s “Out Future Selves.” The album features well-crafted indie rock tunes that should stand the test of time. Stand out tracks include “Our Future Selves,” and “Traffic Hymn.”
- sinistergirlz.com
Shuteye Unison comes on quietly. With great intensity, but quietly nonetheless. These insistent, intricate songs didn't immediately impress me, but I couldn't shake them. And after I got through the album, I had to listen again.
Think math without all the noodling. The precision of these songs is impressive, but the quiet nature of the songs takes away a lot of the natural pretension in such an approach. And when the songs hit their climaxes, well, they're really climaxes.
The sound is a bit muddy, which helps file down some of the edges. These songs are written with a basic, but elongated, rock construction. They can take a while to get to the point. That's the plan, and it works quite well here.
A most unusual album. It's hard to be both this kinetic and this quiet. That's an impressive achievement. I like the way these folks roll.
- A&A
It’s shoegazer music without being shoegazer – it’s edgier than that, a little more indie and a little more experimental. But it’s very atmospheric, very swirly, very noisy, and very melodic, all at once. I’ve listened to this album about 4 or 5 times by now, and each time I like it even better than before. “Better Hallway Vision,” the third track, is a stand-out for it’s angular rhythms and melodic lines; it’s angular while remaining smooth. I love the dissonant guitars – a bit of Sonic Youth influence, perhaps? “Warfeathers” is another great one – I just melt every time I hear this beautiful melody and the super fuzzy guitars. “Camouflagers” is another cool one I really like. It starts out with an ominous drum beat, and then equally ominous guitars join in, sounding like the soundtrack to some indie rock western flick. The song keeps getting thicker and richer and more complex in sound as it progresses. “Century M,” the penultimate cut, is a probably my favorite on the disc. It’s a little more up-tempo, and it truly shimmers with optimism, where other tracks seemed a little more introspective and a tad sad. I really am liking this album a lot, and I think you will, too!
- JerseyBeat
Call it growth, maturity, or whatever, but Shuteye Unison has expanded its sound in new directions, and the music is better for it. When I reviewed the band’s self-titled debut EP a couple of years ago, I talked about how it was an enjoyable sort of dreamy post-rock that, while not being anything too new, was still fairly engaging. On Our Future Selves, the guys married those Explosions In The Sky-type textures to some sleek indie-rock sensibilities. When you factor in the vocals that appear on nearly each track, the result is at times a completely new act.
To my ears, it’s the Spoon-meets-Starflyer-59 styled guitar work that truly sets the tone and pace for the group’s sonic transformation. Cuts like “Be Kimball” and “Better Hallway Vision” have swaggering guitar riffs and superb grooves that give some relative teeth to the otherwise ethereal post-rock tropes. The reason this marriage works is that the “post-rock” exists mostly through the lush, orchestral arrangements and the “indie rock” allows for the jamming out to not be so tame. Thus, instead of the usual head-bobbing and body-swaying, there’s space here for some air guitar playing and rockin’ out – like a more polite version of The Appleseed Cast.
Granted, there are instances when the music reverts to its old habits. “Swear Words,” “War Feathers,” “Portable Rom,” and “Camouflagers” evoke the image of Grandaddy working with the aforementioned Explosions In The Sky to create some new-school psych-pop. Yes, things are pretty and poppy in terms of post-rock, but they’re also reminiscent of ambient filler tunes from an ‘80s movie soundtrack. However, when “Century M” comes along as the penultimate track on the album, the strong guitar work and tough attitude returns as well, providing a big catharsis for the album’s various mood swings.
The PR material for Our Future Selves mentions the influence of John Hughes, but it isn’t until I traversed the record a few times did I get the reference. Evoking sentiments from the characters in the characters of his generation-defining flicks, Shuteye Unison plays with several different, yet familiar, personalities in its music – popular guy, outsider guy, popular girl, and weird girl (I never quite detected a nerd rearing his/her head) – and gives each of them time to stake a claim in the storyline. The result is a clean record that ebbs and flows with a taut precision, providing sturdy balance between the taut rock licks and the meandering, airy sections. While I may not have dug all parts of the album, I can appreciate the ambition that went into this project, and I can certainly like it when a band provides a firm resolution to all of the ideas that it put into play.
- dryvetymeonlyne
8 out of 10. “Be Kimball,” the opening track of off Oakland quartet’s new “Our Future Selves” release, begins controlled but with high energy, like a good power pop tune, but listen closer. The melody is a little askew, the lines on the breaks are a bit longer and more distorted. Shuteye Unison walks that line between catchy and abrasive with a confidence that is infectious. You wait for more sonic surprises, and find them.
From the psychedelic funk of the title track to the soaring epic pop of “Swear Words” and “War Feathers,” singer/guitarist Daniel McKenzie, guitarist Remco Vanderheide, singer/bassist Jon Fee, and drummer Jake Krohn have an endless supply of ancient and modern sounds at their disposal. McKenzie’s vocals are often buried in the mix and therefore most of the lyrics seem abstract, but that works because the music is full of life and ideas.
The jagged post-rock of “Portable Rome” and “Traffic Hymn” is abrasive and downbeat but still structured like a solid pop song. In a final bit of daring, the final two tracks are both abstract ambient pieces that often disappear into their own mix. Hypnotic and unexpected, both “Century M” and “PFFO70810” leave evidence of new explorations to come.
Shuteye Unison combine the best in melodic pop and artsy post-rock without sacrificing or abusing the quality of either. “Our Future Selves” is brilliant and disorienting, in the way you react to any band that comes out of nowhere and sounds like they’ve been speaking your language all your life.
- Foxy Digitalis
Ask and you shall receive, isn't that what 'they' say? Shuteye Unison is back, and in review of their debut self-titled EP release, I was abundantly clear, more is what we need.
Present on Our Future Selves, that was not on their debut is lighter side, a more upbeat, frenetic side, such as "Century M" or the lead track "Be Kimball". Leading with a Garage Rock guitar and heavy drum beat, "Be Kimball” is more focused vocally than most here. The title track has probably the best vocals, paired with a melodic rhythm section. On the bridge to finale, a groove is found that makes these guys so enjoyable. Though, "Better Hallway Vision" seems a bit over-done to me, it holds the upbeat feel in place for the rest of the album.
After a sullen "Swear Words" and a ditty named "Traffic Hymn", "War Feathers" is probably one of the strongest tracks. Edgy blended rock with a sluggish vocal vibe, this track starts steady and haunting. After several chorus/verse, a pattering effect leads this track off to another melody more grind and grunge. The following song "Portable Rome" takes that standard and runs off even further this time, I can't resist but calling them out on a serious Tool flavoring. The hallowed children's vocals intertwine with the next song and probably the best format here, "Camouflogers". More clarity, and vocal spotlighting, it's almost as if it took them this long to be themselves. Progressive in its guitar uphill climb, the bridges and end result make for a must not miss song.
Nothing searing out, but all a quality body of work, even more so now for those fans of Silversun Pickups than ever before, Scheduled to drop November 16th, 2010, "Our Future Selves" is perhaps a status quo of their debut release. Though there's still more exploration to be done with the vocals, the instrumentation of Shuteye Unison's sophomore effort is nothing short of pure.
- Music Emissions
...another dose of fresh indie pop
- The Bay Bridged
The Shuteye Unison are from San Francisco, but I wouldn't blame you if you mistook them for a Midwestern indie rock band from the mid-to-late-90s. If your memory serves you properly, you will probably recall their tight rock jams as those of The Rum Diary.
Shuteye Unison build upon the work they did in TRD and come back with rhythmic bases that pleasantly inch along in the same melodic manner that you'd expect from a band like Braid. When the vocals and guitars come in, it's nearly an amalgamation of the best parts of the Shipping News meeting up with Mineral for a jam session. Yes, definitely something worth checking out.
- Loud Farm
Out of the ashes of the legendary THE RUM DIARY comes SHUTEYE UNISON, an outfit that expands on the noise rock THE RUM DIARY forged, but with a handful of influences ranging from groove like post-punk to 80‘s brat pack movies with hints at art influenced post-rock that puts a unique spin on the standard indie rock slant.
A disc where no two tracks are alike, this San Franciso based quartet showcase eclectic and accomplished songwriting that encompasses garage rock guitars, atmospheric crunchiness, and even melodic grunge, creating a swirling blend of moody, haunting and sonic rockers. Trying to capture something ‘physical, emotional, beat-driven, and exciting’(according to the band), Our Future Selves easily accomplishes this feat, testing the limits of what can be done with the standard guitar, bass, and drums set up.
Full of dreamy, textured, post-punk/rock soundscapes, this sophomore effort is another compelling look into SHUTEYE UNISON’S ability to pen delicated yet charged, hushed yet bubbling with intensity. Great enough to draw parallels to Fugazi, Sonic Youth or Local H, yet still walking a path uniquely their own, SHUTEYE UNISON score another excellent disc.
- thebykerack.com
there is no better title for shuteye unison’s sophomore release. this record is an amazing step forward & into uncharted territory for these four san francisco post-punkers. taking the intense & brooding tone from last year’s self titled release, our future selves then adds an urgent & almost frantic energy to their already well established sound. the songs are more upbeat & high tempo, just on the edge of power punk fury.
this is no better achieved, then with the records opener & first single, be kimball. the song opens with a gritty distorted guitar & continues forward, building & then crumbling into a dissonant atmosphere, riding along the back of elegant piano. the band also released a video for this song, & it follows the emotions of the track perfectly, putting the feelings conjured into appropriate images of the band catching fire, drowning, & the eventual collapse of the world around them.
another highlight is the second track, the title track. heavy with groove & driven by a sensual rhythm, this is a great song to get close to someone beautiful. it almost has a kind of punk rock tango feeling, one of those songs that your grandparents might say oozes with sex. this song very well could get you into a lot of trouble, but with a smile on your face.
this album continues to move in a very organic & natural way, taking you for a tour of your own essence of humanity. moments of quiet, moments of reflection, moments of anger, set to almost hardcore riffs & accompanied by punctuated drums, lead you inside yourself & then tear you open again. these guys are at the top of their game here, & it will be a challenge to surpass the song writing featured here, but a challenge im sure these guys are looking forward to tackling. be sure to watch for these guys over this year & for the years to come, cause they are truly the leaders of pioneering the post-punk sound.
- chiddythekidd
San Francisco’s Shuteye Unison feel familiar. As soon as you turn on their new album Our Future Selves, you are met by the calm dreamy tones of shoegaze and some of the harsher tonality often associated with noise rock and some post punk. Like many of their peers, this group seamlessly moves between soft, fragile moments and larger than life ones and while they do seem to stretch things out a little too long at times they are definitely headed in the right direction.
There are a number of bands out there right now that have combined this same kind of sound, but Shuteye Unison distinguishes themselves by opting to stick with calm, laid back melodies for much of the album and only ramping up the volume and intensity at specific calculated moments. The instrumentalists have created some songs that are layered with melody to create an entrancing atmosphere, but often just as the listener is starting to float away they bring it back with some loud bursts of sound. Everything flows quite nicely, but one issue that I did have with Our Future Selves was that some of the songs seemed to drag a little bit. While the band has been able to keep things from becoming too repetitive in the middle by using noise rock tones, the songs often end with lighter melodies that last a little longer than they need to. The average song length is about 4-5 minutes with a few tracks stretching over 7 minutes, and it didn’t always seem as though the group was able to maintain their momentum on the longer ones.
Although the instrumentals are prone to bursts of energy and intensity, the vocals on Our Future Selves stay fairly mellow for the entire album. This proves to be a good thing though, as the way in which the lead singer’s soft voice reverberates over the instrumentals works perfectly and adds to the overall atmosphere. Even when the music picks up a bit the vocals remain a bit hazy but there are a few occasions where it seems as though they are trying to break through the wall of sound and steal the spotlight for just a second. There’s a sense of fragility, as though the soft vocal tones will be washed away by the rest of the music, and I could see a lot of people finding that quite appealing.
Shuteye Unison has created an album that has an enchanting atmosphere to it, but the songs aren’t always able to end quite as strongly as they began. This keeps the group from reaching the same heights that some of their peers have been able to achieve, but with a little more refinement I believe that they can get there as well. However, if you enjoy guitar driven rock that is used to create shimmering tones and hazy melodies give this one a shot as it does have some stand out moments.
- cosmosgaming.com
Reviewing albums like the 2010 release from Shuteye Unison, Our Future Selves, always manages to give me a headache. There’s so much to love in one location; so much to pick apart in every single song that attempting to break it down into manageable pieces is to render it useless, unlistenable. There’s nothing worth minimizing here — there’s just the whole, messy, delicious pie.
Shuteye Unison offer plenty to celebrate, especially if your tastes run closer to the accented postrock rhythms of the past decade a la Sonic Youth and At the Drive-In. But this is rhythmic postrock you can tap along to even while singing along to lyrics like, “The future of our ascent/ into digital transplants” (“Our Future Selves”). There’s plenty of melody to latch onto in the first few tracks. “Be Kimball,” even at a lengthy seven minutes, never lapses into dullness with tempo shifts and dynamic volume changes. There’s a furious Sonic Youth-inspired riff that will make you long for your copy of Daydream Nation that slowly gives way to breakdown after breakdown until the song fades out in a haze of distant piano, feedback and finger snaps.
“Our Future Selves” and “Better Hallway Vision” feel like discarded Fugazi tracks, all interlocking bass and pounding drums, and the guitar-trapped choruses lead into bigger segments where the band displays their ability to piece together small parts into a larger puzzle. For the first five or six tracks, Our Future Selves comes out with a daring bit of immediacy for such intricate, almost hushed, tunes. Sadly, that early goodwill gets a little squandered by “Portable Rome,” a dragging mid-tempo that begs for a shot in the arm that never comes.
The final four tracks, including the puzzlingly named “Pfff070810” (your guess is as good as mine) take up about 20 minutes and lack the direction that first six tracks (at an almost equal 25 minutes) displayed so well. It’s tough to see an album of this magnitude crash and burn, but despite my best efforts, I can’t push through gimmicks like the fade in/out kid’s chorus of war chants, the absence of vocal melody, and the swapping of intelligent riffs for aimless filler.
Shuteye Unison deserve massive praise for the grand ambitions behind Our Future Selves. It’s a dense (but never indiscernible) forest of intelligent postrock where some aspects work flawlessly while others leave me reaching for the aspirin and hitting the “next” button on the CD player.
- STEREOSUBVERSION.COM
Shuteye Unison is one of my favorite west coast bands. Their first album was badass, and this record has not let me down. Daniel Mckenzie, Jon Fee, Jake Krohn, and Remco Vanderheide worked incredibly hard to make this album happen and released it on April 12th of this year through Parks and Records. RIYL: Autolux, Sonic Youth, and Silversun Pickups.
Our Future Selves is a very, very interesting record. I think that's why I like it so much. Even though I can recommend it towards similar bands, it honestly doesn't sound like ANYTHING else. It's really hard to be this original and not sound like a.) shit b.) assholes c.) all of the above. But these boys manage to do it. It's a very light, mellow, and slow record. It makes me feel like I am on drugs. The sound is very thought provoking and honestly makes me think of euphony. I reserve the term "euphony" for the most extreme cases, you guys. Let's start off with the first track: "Be Kimball." The intro is badass. It gets you pumped. It's catchy, it's rough, and it makes you excited to hear what's next. It goes into a very interesting melody: they put a soothing and relaxed vocal melody along side jagged, powerful instrumentals. I love it. "Portable Rome" is shorter than "Be Kimball" but I really think it has more to it. It's got more going on.
I'm just gonna talk about a few of my favorite songs: "Century M" has a beautiful riff. It makes me think of sunshine. (Yes, I said sunshine.) "Better Highway Vision" is probably the most entertaining and abstract song on the album. All the instruments work together perfectly on this track. "Our Future Selves" easily has the coolest lyrics ever. What a great album.
- Idle and the Bear
A few months back we received a promo request for this oddly named band. The promo people recommended the band for fans of Sonic Youth, Silversun Pickups, and Autolux. I enjoy all three of those acts, so i downloaded the LP and put it on my phone. Over the past few months, songs from Our Future Selves have been bubbling up from the random flow of music and into my consciousness, so it's time for a review.
This is the second album from the Oakland-based four-piece. I had never heard of them before, so this is my introduction. Their music is characterized by really clear and precise drumming (courtesy of John Krohn), hushed and harmonized vocals that remind me of the 1970s pop influence on bands such as Sealions, and tinkling guitars in layers. It's a simple mix, but it works nicely.
The album starts with Be Kimball which features crunchy guitar riffing and that lovely drumming over the voices in a dull roar, a sort of blurring together of the voices, buried in the mix, letting the guitars lead. As the song grows, it gets more and more complex, with piano, e-bowed guitar drone, a section of finger snapping, and radio static samples. It's seven minutes long, so while that seems like a lot of stuff, the band makes it work.
The title track is up next, and this is a much lighter song, almost delicate. The drums are scattered and the bass lays down a nice groove over tinkling guitars. But then, in the middle of the song, there is a moment where the guitars and keyboards retreat to a bare drone, the drums thud away loudly, and it sounds like all of the band members are standing 10 feet away from the microphone chanting. It's a truly lovely moment, and unexpectedly beautiful.
Shuteye Unison get their Sonic Youth on during Better Hallway Vision. This starts as a fast-paced indie rock tune, but gets progressively noisier and heavier, until at the end the band are riffing away in a heavy manner that would not have been out of place on Washing Machine. If you like that sort of thing, then this is a fine example.
Swear Words is, ironically, a slower, happy pop song. The drumming is scattered, the voices hushed, and the guitars chime like on a song by Hammock or Lights Out Asia. Very nice. Traffic Hymn is vaguely similar, with a faster pace.
War Feathers mixes it up by being a little dronier and noisier than poppy. One guitar grinds under a layer of static while Krohn pounds his toms and the song meanders under a bit of odd keyboard dronish tension. The tension continues in Portable Rome, where grating see-sawing noses create a drone under the guitars. The voice is hushed, almost whispered, and the guitars grind in slow distortion. It builds to a thunderous climax, then slowly fades out, a keyboard drone that wavers until it is swallowed by the sound of some sort of children's choir, echoed and distant. The ending is kind of eerie, to be honest, but nicely done.
When the children's voices fade out, Shuteye Unison get their stadium rock on. Camouflagers is an epic tune, with big swelling guitars, Krohn punishing his kit, and the whole band bringing their best. This is noisy indie rock done on a grand scale. The bassist shines at the start of Century M, picking out a slow melody while e-bowed guitars drone. This song continues the epic and big feel of Camouflagers, although in a dronier way.
Finally, things wrap up with the two minute outro PFF070810. This is a faint electro rumbling and light drone that sort of fades the whole record out on a pretty note.
Overall, this is an impressive album. The recording is excellent, bringing to mind the careful and precise production that Brian Paulson did on Fin Fang Foom's Monomyth. This is an album to listen to on headphones, so that you can hear all of the various layers playing against each other.
The band also really know what they are doing, and if Camouflagers is an indication, they can go really far.
- EvilSponge.org
I hope they won’t take offense by this statement, but in sending me their 2010 full-length Our Future Selves, Oakland’s Shuteye Unison were in a hurry to be a mystery. I was awoken by the FedEx guy on the morning of my town’s first snowfall of the winter and the package he delivered was this outstanding record. Keep in mind, to this point, no other band has rushed an album to me via UPS or FedEx. Upon opening the box, no standard bio came with, nor any note asking for it to be reviewed for this here blog. Just the album. And when I went to Tweet about receiving it, I was shocked that the band hadn’t updated their Twitter since April 2009. I can almost understand if a band has no Twitter, but to have one and to have dropped the updates seemed puzzling.
The design itself made me scratch my head even more. By far the most elaborate I’ve seen in recent time, from well-known bands or new ones, the packaging for Selves is a love letter of sorts to books and libraries. The cover features books stacked to the side and a manual cutaway that is unique with every copy. You read that right: quite literally, a page from a random book is pasted under an open rectangle. On my particular version, text regarding the Ural Mountains and the Straits of Gibraltar appears on the underside of the photo used up front, with certain sections underlined in blue pen. It’s a dynamic choice, and one that surely calls for access to a lot of used books.
But it goes further. The album comes with a classy bookmark (complete with yarn at the end) that gives the lyrics to the entire album, plus a library check-out card and envelope with the band, album title and record label stamped on it. They’re all ingenious ideas and if I found this album at a store and known exactly nothing about them, I’d probably buy it just out of necessity for something so intriguing. Did I mention it’s on dark green vinyl? This thing just doesn’t stop, and you haven’t even put the needle on yet.
On to the band itself, which is half comprised from members of the influential Rum Diary, a group synonymous with clean, intricate guitars and hushed vocals not unlike American Analog Set. With Shuteye Unison, the same vocals are there but with more downward strums and a lot more urgency. Although the opening ready-for-the-arena build of “Be Kimball” made me glance back at the album cover to be sure I hadn’t settled in for 45 minutes of AC/DC garage demos, most of the sounds could go hand-in-hand with some of Death Cab for Cutie’s more aggressive material, or that of radio sweethearts Silversun Pickups.
The aforementioned “Kimball” takes a lot on its shoulders, being a seven-minute opening track - especially one that opens with force but winds down to nothing but hushed television noise and graceful piano - but it ends up being a good lead-in to Selves as a whole. The title track slinks and shuffles around breathy requests to “get up,” “Better Hallway Vision” comes to a crashing end (reminiscent of The Casket Lottery), and the charming dirge of “Portable Rome” fades into what could be found audio a la Alan Lomax of children chanting. It’s all pretty mysterious and engaging.
For vinyl specifically, Our Future Selves is one of those rare finds that keeps on surprising you. The drums reverberate, the bass drives most of the songs through your speakers, and all the dramatic shimmers of guitar that could end up in the background actually sparkle. This blog is still in its infant stages, but Shuteye Unison is the kind of band you hope to discover somewhere along the way in writing it. I’m just shocked it happened so soon. Although this record is already nearly two years old, I can’t recommend snagging it enough.
- Rather You Than Her (vinyl blog)
Shuteye Unison played a great show at the Rickshaw Stop to celebrate the release of their new album Our Future Selves. Several of the tracks, including Be Kimball and the last thirty seconds of Better Hallway Visions, explore heavier rock elements before traveling back to the more typical shoegaze sound established on their self titled, debut album. Space is an important element in SeU’s music. Unlike the typical shoegaze sound established by bands like My Bloody Valentine elements are constantly added and taken away. Melodies are allowed to breathe before walls of beautiful noise are built up and then pulled away again, leaving the listener with a sense of movement that most contemporary music lacks. The lead guitar on War Feathers is infectious and the interplay with the bass creates a delicate and complicated sound that’s hard to turn off. But rather than wax, or perhaps wane, poetic you should listen to the available tracks including the new album’s title track, at their myspace page.
- Raen Payne
Bay Area superstars Shuteye Unison return with their 2nd LP on November 16, the first time we've heard new material from the band since 2008, though the guys have been busy in other bands like The Rum Diary, Built For The Sea, The Action Design, The Aimless Never Miss and undoubtedly some other projects.
Self described 'indie rock after the post-punk years and before the mainstream got involved', Shuteye Unison create interesting and indie pop with catchy basslines, tight drumming and smooth, melodic vocals. Taking some of the best elements from garage rock, grunge, and all sides of the rock spectrum, Shuteye Unison finds a groove and cultivates it well here. A great disc that brings to mind the 'alternative rock' explosion from the early to mid 90's, yet with an updated contemporary feel, this is an excellent display of driving, sometimes haunting guitar driven rock.
Also, a portion of the proceeds from this disc will go to non-profit organizations like the National Park Conservation Associaton. For fans of: Silversun Pickups, Sonic Youth, Fugazi, Abandoned Pools
- GO211.com
Shuteye Unison's self-titled album has patiently awaited its turn on my review list for a few months now because it was released back in 2008, and thus not considered a priority compared to more recent releases this year. Another reason for the delay is that I haven't quite been able to figure out what to make of the record, but since that's unlikely to change anytime soon, I might as well have a go at reviewing the record.
What we're dealing with is quiet, dreamy post-rock not much unlike the recent Driving By City Sidewalks record, although Shuteye Unison's expression is much softer and dreamier for the most part. The guitars are light, and the vocals smoothly faded back to create an introspective shoegaze vibe, generally referencing names like The Appleseed Cast and the like. Sounds like your run of the mill post-rock, right? Not quite. Where so many bands in the genre fall into the trap of pretentiousness, Shuteye Unison succeed in creating a down-to-earth, easily absorbable sound that keeps both its feet on the ground despite flying high up in the clouds in terms of range. Much of this has to do with the extensive use of vocals which add another dimension to the sound that could otherwise easily become repetitive. Some of the vocal harmonies are perfect for creating the dreamy sound of the record, with "Tomorrow's Five Horizons" probably being the best track on the record. Fans of Oceansize will probably fall in love with the melodic ring in the guitars, but yet more artsy post-rock fans should take a liking in the carefully constructed soundscape.
Still, as some of the songs race far beyond the seven minute mark, you can rest assured believe me when I say Shuteye Unison isn't going to be the band to pull you over to the post-rock world. I'm also still puzzled as to whether I really like the record or just think it's average, but I'm guessing my limited experience with the genre might have something to do with it. But what's important is that throughout the entire record, not once does it feel like the band is lost in their own sound or confused about the direction the songs should progress towards.
- Rockfreaks.net
Shuteye Unison’s self-titled EP is the sort of sprawling, atmospheric rock you can temporarily lose yourself in. Daniel Mckenzie’s vocals rarely rise above a whisper, but his vocal style is the perfect fit for Shuteye Unison’s lush soundscapes. Shuteye Unison’s songs are all about the build ups, especially on lengthy tracks such as the seven and a half minute long “Fields Landing”. “Fields Landing” opens with sparse instrumentation and sound clips and moves along at an almost glacial pace before transitioning into a more aggressive approach in the waning minutes. Although Shuteye Unison’s strength seems to be crafting beautiful, expansive instrumental passages, the band also displays the ability to disrupt the lulling nature of their songs with brief flashes of heaviness (“Slow Ravens”) or unrelenting energy (“Tomorrow’s Five Horizons”). Shuteye Unison’s debut EP is enjoyable and shows a band that is capable of great things, but some of the songs tend to drag as the album goes on. I loved listening to this album while walking to class when the weather was less than perfect outside (either pouring rain or in the middle of a notorious Oswego snowstorm), and I find that this album is perfect for those moments. I am curious to hear the follow up the band is currently recording and I feel that if they further build on the groundwork of Shuteye Unison, it will be an album to look out for.
- Absolute Punk
Four out of Five Stars! A San Francisco, CA bred formation designed from hiatus band members of Rum Diary, Built For The Sea, Mijuanito and The Action Design is a pure example of what rhythm and melody should mean to music today. Though this release is over a year old and a mere six songs, and ordinarily this is where the real nuggets are found. Nonchalant and without pressure hiding away from the mainstream.
This recording is collaborating sounds of experimental post punk and that warm fuzzy The Cure development of echoed vocals. "Through Dunes" once through the slow intro breathes a consistent guitar stroking and drum pattern that mellows and moves. "Latin Metrics" has a more upbeat but dark drive, and without long delay, the lead vocals are indie and poignantly background symptoms of the instrumentation. One of the best tracks here without a doubt is "Fields Landing". A slowly cut song with carvings that will leave your brain in a constant sway of the rhythm for the rest of the day.
I'm not sure where these guys went or planned after finishing up this recording, but this review is a simple request for more.
- Music Emissions
Edgy yet soft, with a pinch of Sonic Youth’s spacey-ness and Death Cab’s thoughtfulness, Shuteye Unison makes an ethereal and touching album with Our Future Selves.
The band’s sophomore album starts out with “Be Kimble,” which feels like an overcast and crisp fall day. Each of the songs thereafter has its own sort of nostalgic feel, some bitter, some soothing. None of the songs, though they fit well together, fall into the same formulaic pattern – the songs range from seven minutes to about two minutes. It can also be seen in the different experimental qualities in each. “Traffic Hymn” has more of a punk-pop feel while “War Feathers” has a more anthemic tone.
The drums have a soft impact throughout while reverb floods in and out. The guitars provide a simplistic, but rich spine to each song’s package. The lyrics also provide a strong base. Shuteye Unison’s lyrics are poetic and in keeping with the ambience of their sound. Lyrics like “An avalanche of wealthy homes, all broken up like ski slope bones/ Calls are made in numbers with final bursts of confession,” provide rich imagery.
Sometimes though, the spaciness makes me feel… well… spacey, sometimes to the point of where I’m not sure I remember what came before on the album – much less which song I’m listening to.
The overall sound of the album is saturated but unassuming as each song ebbs and flows into the next. The songs that crash down hard don’t become overwhelming and the softer ones still leave an impression, though not one as lasting as I might hope.
- Buzzlegoose.com
Been listening to this several times through whilst doing a bit of ironing, yes I multi-task, and it really helped me through it to be sure. If I was to be lazy and use an easy genre to casually put this in then I would say "shoegazing", but of course I would never do that, heaven forbid! The sound I think harkens back to a few English bands that I could name, Ride for one, and Swervedriver another. The songs are generally long, though not all, and they build and then go through that hypnotic repetitive thing that has you nodding along with a thousand yard stare in your eyes. Some of it is a little math-rock but not overly complicated, and maybe a tad Karate before they found jazz. They also remind me a bit, in places, of Solea, a band I really love. 6 tracks, some nice samples, one from Fulham v. Reading 10.3.07 (!), and an excellent production that has everything nice and clear and powerful. The vocals are of the "dreamy" sounding kind and the artwork has a very cool Native American theme, as do the lyrics in places I think, though that could just be me. The record label, Parks and Records, amongst other things says it is working in a way to try and reduce waste on packaging etc and also work with other organizations to make our planet greener, which you've got to wholeheartedly support! So, a release that I can only highly recommend on all levels.
- Suspect Device Reviews (UK)
So I’ve been meaning to listen to this self-titled Shuteye Unison EP for like fucking forever now so I won’t dilly dally here. It begins with the ambient/atmospheric/instrumental intro of “CRF 030608” and segues right into “Tomorrow’s Five Horizons” which sounds (to me) like what M83 might sound like if they didn’t have synthesizers and weren’t neutered. Next comes “Fields Landing” which starts off slow and breathy but about 2/3 of the way through the fuzzed out guitars rip the song wide open but at a running time of over seven minutes, there is plenty to go around even before it gently fizzles. “Latin Metrics” (a song whose title I really like) is more upbeat in a Pinback-y sorta way before “Slow Ravens” rings out a bit like Dream Signals In full Circles (albeit with breathy vocals) at first until it too erupts like thunder and lightning on summer night. Shuteye Unison then closes out the EP with the nine minute epic “Through Dunes.” It all adds up to an EP that should have been on my best of 2008 short list and the first thing in this dreamy post-rock genre that has really impressed me lately. The compositions are intricate and lengthy but never come remotely close to boring. I’d say that this San Fransisco trio (all three members were formerly in The Rum Diary) has a bright future. Have a listen.
- Can you See the Sunset
Here’s a record you will play for your friends. Shuteye Unison’s debut on Parks and Records is a swelling, dramatic release, hearkening back to the days of Sunny Day Real Estate, and, dare I say, Clarity era Jimmy Eat World.
Relaxed and warm, Shuteye Unison sound like an instrumental band… who just happen to have a lead singer. Daniel McKenzie, Jon Fee and Jake Krohn may as well be one unit, as their individual roles are hardly identifiable. No really. I couldn’t find information on the band or who does what. Either way, it doesn’t matter. They are a cohesive unit, the most since Silversun Pickups popped up on my radar several years ago.
“Fields Landing” bends the band’s shoegazer tendencies into rock opera; at 7 minutes 54 seconds, it still feels too short. “Slow Ravens” and “Tomorrow’s Five Horizons” are plausible singles, but hardly trite. The former is their most direct link to the classic SDRE debut, Diary, and the latter is the band peaking in a layered and moving anthem.
Shuteye Unison have serious potential if they prove themselves to be more than a splinter group of The Rum Diary (of which all three members hail). It’s difficult to go from up and coming underground buzz band to fledgling underground buzz band, especially if you stay local to the scene your previous band once inhabited. Regardless, the debut is an excellent start to something. I’m looking forward to finding out what that ’something’ might be… Spoiler alert: it’ll probably be another record, or a tour. Both are good things.
- Radio Exile
Though the band itself is relatively new, the members of Shuteye Unison are no strangers to the Bay Area music scene, which may explain why their debut feels so fully realized in effort and execution. Picking up where their excellent former outfit the Rum Diary left off, singer/guitarist Daniel Mckenzie, singer/bassist Jon Fee, and drummer Jake Krohn continue their venture into the post-/noise-rock terrain, crafting dreamy hypnotic melodies with bass, drums, shining guitar, and hushed vocals, which intertwine into a mesmerizing mix. Ghostly closer "Through Dunes" builds as a head-nodding narcoleptic track, then culminates into a crashing wave of noise. Atmospheric yet hook-filled.
- East Bay Express, The Best Music of 2008, Top 10!
Out on the socially responsible Parks and Records label, Shuteye Unison's debut is packaged in 100% recycled/reused packaging, and a percentage of its sales goes to several environmental foundations. Neat stuff for sure, but the real good news is that the music is pretty damn good. This trio, formerly known as The Rum Diary, plays epic, expansive indie rock that is remarkably engaging. Shoegazey "Tomorrow's Five Horizons" reminds me of top-line The Brother Kite material, while nine minute dream-rock epic "Through Dunes" is beautifully lush and sprawling. "Fields Landing," meanwhile, is closer in spirit to Three Mile Pilot's damaged rock dirge (they share their producer with 3MP), and "Slow Ravens" is loose and unwound. A dreamy mini-album that is uniformly solid, Shuteye Unison's debut provides a memorable dose of inventive indie rock. Keep an eye out for these guys.
- indieville.com
Shuteye Unison is the offshoot of one of my favorite Bay Area bands, The Rum Diary (this is assuming you consider the farmland north of Marin County to still be the "Bay Area", which I do). Like their predecessor, they could be lumped into the vague genre of "Post Rock", a genre I've never really been able to describe but always know it when I hear it…I think it might have something to do with tuning or maybe how many band members wear sweaters, I'll have to get back to you on that. Anyways, if you know the Rum Diary then you could probably correctly guess that Shuteye Unison sounds fairly reminiscent of them, but with a slightly poppier edge in a Pinback sort of way. You could also throw in some Mogwai and Helio Sequence references, if you were feeling cheeky. The Rum Diary never got the respect they deserved in my opinion – Here's to hoping Shuteye Unison is able to grab a few more hearts and minds, because the music they produce certainly warrants it. (3.5 out of 5)
- SLAP Magazine
This is seriously good, you should pay some attention to this one. It gets off to an odd start though, with a wall of post rock guitar effects that have me reaching for the skip button. Luckily, once we get on to the songs proper, things are much improved. Quite often around this time of year, I dig out that Antarctica CDEP from several years ago, and start wondering why I can't seem to find any other bands that play that kind of spaced out, ethereal indie rock (because most bands that play that kind of thing are too obsessed with aping My Bloody Valentine to be worth listening to). Shuteye Unison nail it, dealing in long songs full of spacey guitars and effects, with drifting, smooth vocals that are amidst the mix but not drowned out or indecipherable. It is a very dreamlike sound that they have, and it suits this time of year to perfection. Damn fine EP all round here, I look forward to hearing where they go next, as I have a feeling it's going to be rather special.
- Collective Zine UK
The recipe for a decent “post-rock” track is deceptively simple: carefully mix crashing waves of reverb-laden guitars, pounding drums, a reluctance to include lyrics to match the music, and a love for multiple, humongous crescendos in one song; then, let it set for six to seven minutes. If done correctly, out pops the perfect background music for a variety of scenarios: baby-making, burning out, and philosophical conversations come quickly to mind. Personally, I blame Sigur Ros, not because they weren’t the first to effectively combine these elements to critical acclaim, but because they were the first to bring it into the contemporary pop music consciousness. When your music can be found in the same iTunes library alongside that of Jack Johnson, you know that you’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere.
So, how does one actually craft a “post-rock” album that can be discerned from the average Explosions In The Sky wannabe act? Well, if you’re three-piece act Shuteye Unison, you accomplish this by injecting a healthy dose of pop and decent lyrics alongside those layers of guitars, bass, and drums. Their six-song, eponymous debut EP rings in at 31 minutes, giving the band ample time to set up each track’s basic dream-pop pattern before building up to the inevitable grand conclusion. The shimmering, chiming guitars and meditative passages of “Tomorrow’s Five Horizons” provides for a fine introduction to the band’s sound, and “Through Dunes,” with its ability to create the sensation of watching black storm clouds break to reveal a blue sky, is an excellent concluding bookend for the whole project’s atmosphere. While their music isn’t the most complex in their scene, Shuteye Unison is a welcome addition to a genre that’s become a bit tiresome and repetitive in output.
- Dryvetyme Onlyne
...a great spin on atmospheric indie rock. the rhythms and hooks are tight as a freaking drum while the guitar and vocals noodles up above somewhere amongst the clouds and unicorns.
- When We Were Younger and Better (blog)
Shuteye Unison is a new band formed by two members of the Rum Diary. Atmospheric guitars, with loud-soft dynamics and melodic bass lines will appeal to fans of Pinback, Three Mile Pilot, Mogwai, and The Police. Shuteye Unison starts where the Rum Diary left off, but with more straightforward beats, and louder guitars. A definite must for anyone into epic rock!
- AMP Magazine
Only 6 songs here but this North Bay trio are impressive at creating dreampop soundscapes that don't come off as boring or uninspired. There's a lot more going on that the typical dreampop tune like on the sweeping, cascading "Tomorrow's Five Horizons" which swoops n' sways all the while having a solid rhythm section holding it on terra firma while "Latin Metrics' slips into a warm groove with rollicking drums and mysterious vocals courtesy of Daniel Mckenzie and "Slow Ravens" creeps along like the best Pinback tune.
- Dagger
Shuteye Unison rose out of the burnt embers of The Rum Diary. While this act remained relatively unknown, the tricking and somewhat soothing sounds of Shuteye Unison’s new record, a self titled affair which totals in at just over thirty minutes, will surely guarantee them at least a modicum of success. Bearing in mind these links, regular readers will soon note that this isn’t the first time we have covered these young fellows. The Rum Diary were succinctly described in our Tracking the Trends series as “one of California 's more interesting bands” and having “a stunning work of art in its midst.” Kind words, but now it’s time to see whether Shuteye Unison can live up to the reputation of their previous incarnation.
Thankfully, they do not disappoint. Shuteye Unison offers similar genre swapping and splicing that was clearly favoured in The Rum Diary, but musically they have come on leaps and bounds. The compositions featured on this self-titled record are incandescent wonders. Flitting between spaced out and dreamy vocals that would make My Bloody Valentine proud, as well as darker pieces like “Fields Landing,” which features Bradford Cox vocal atmospherics over a dark American voiced sample and what can essentially be described as Texas Chainsaw Massacre noises, Shuteye Unison have clearly increased their musical repertoire.
For those who prefer their music wholly instrumental, Shuteye Unison is not for you. However, if you can stomach someone flexing their vocal chords, this record offers a real treat for your passive ears. Moving between tribal-come-dub murmurings much in the same vein as Pocahaunted as well as a pre-occupation with primordial mutterings such as the sun, shadows and water, you cannot deny that Shuteye Unison manage to compress an awful lot into this rather short offering. The only qualm I had with the lyricism is that it did border on dreaded trite territory, such as in the aforementioned “Fields Landing” where the singer’s interest with the “party tonight” sounds like the inane mutterings of the fellow on Weezer’s “Undone - The Sweater Song” as opposed to anything truly interesting or, dare I say it, “deep”.
While Shuteye Unison do move between any genre they sit fit, opener and the final composition, “CRF030608” and “Through Dunes” feature a bubbling ambient piece which, while it isn’t in fitting with the rest of the record, is a soothing addition that adds wonders to the overall effort. All in all, while it’s a relatively short affair, Shuteye Unison’s debut has a somewhat hypnotic affect on the listener and comes strongly recommended.
- The Silent Ballet
I wish it was autumn. That's the first thing I thought of as the new Shuteye Unison self-titled debut spun around in the Ripple CD player, it's gentle tones sparkling through the speakers. I wish it was autumn.
It's hard to explain, but something about the music, the dreamy, shimmering indie pop of Shuteye Unison just makes me think of brisk autumn days, a cool breeze lilting through the trees, rustling the leaves, stirring them to revel in their glorious tones of red, orange and gold. A simple melancholy floating through the air heralding the coming of the darker winter nights. The glistening of the first morning dew on the front lawn, a harbinger of the arrival of the imminent frost. That's Shuteye Unison.
Now, it certainly doesn't hurt that autumn is my favorite season. There's just something about nature in autumn as it prepares to sleep. The simple joys of reaching for my favorite sweater, the heat of the summer finally past. The chill in the air makes me introspective, a time for solitary walking, crunching the fallen leaves under my hiking shoes, the flip-flops and sandals safely packed away for the season. It's a time for taking stock of my life, for recharging my energies. Time to start a meditative journey. That's Shuteye Unison.
I never had the pleasure of hearing The Rum Diary, but when they went on hiatus, three of the members (Daniel McKenzie, Jon Fee and Jake Krohn) began to write and record together. Their muse inspired, Shuteye Unison was born. Self-recorded and mixed with Pall Jenkins (The Black Heart Procession, Three Mile Pilot)l, the band displays a wealth of texture and restraint. This is dreamy, glistening alt-pop, instantly accessible, shimmering in its tone and downright beautiful in its scope. An ambient, post-punk dreamscape of textures, looping bassline and sparkling guitars. It is an album of patience and quiet, of mood and intent, spiked with enough muscle to propel the songs through to the end. It is an album of infinite complexity and sublime simplicity. Starkly somber in tone, yet ultimately uplifting. Grand, yet intimate. It is contradictions within itself, yet as clear as a newborn autumn morning.
To my ear, Shuteye Unison recall some of the best hypnotic alt-pop of days gone by. The floating dreaminess of the Cocteau Twins. The vocal tone and melodies of my personal favorites The Lotus Eaters. Shades of David Sylvian. Hints of Autolux. The ambiance of the more introspective 4AD label. The album is dense, but not suffocating, a streak of light shimmering off a still pool.
Beginning with the ambient intro "Crf030608," it doesn't take long for the vision of this band to be revealed. "Tomorrow's Five Horizons," rides on a melodic bass line, a throbbing drum sequence right into the soaring guitars. The song is one seamlessly lush hook. An effortless atmospheric journey through passages of soaring beauty and lulling quiet. A warning of a future ecologic apocalypse told with a rapturous chorus and delicate harmonies. It is a stunning work of subtle beauty.
"Fields Landing," follows, a mournful, almost pre-war feeling, with the drums marching out a beat similar to a weary army trudging reluctantly through a muddy field. The melancholy synthesized tone, near bagpipe like in quality, add to this feeling, a Scottish Loch, a misty, green hill of grass. But this isn't a war song, it's a journey, a search for sanctuary. And finally, when the guitar crashes in with vigor, the song launches into its own time and place. Throughout the song, as the entire album, the hushed vocals are an instrument, adding a delicate touch of fragility, a tone, a hint, rather than a focus. The overall effect is striking.
"Latin Metrics," rides a stuttering drum beat through the shimmering guitar, creating wave after wave of hypnotizing post-rock. The drumming on "Slow Ravens," sucks me in like a kid looking down a well, dreaming and imaging what strange universes dwell inside. Moments of fury strike through the chiming guitar tones, chords of aggression, driving this song more urgently than those that came before. This is probably my favorite track, if I was forced to pick one, but in truth, the six tracks here, including the final nine-minute opus, "Through the Dunes," all act together as one unified whole, a transportation into a lush, atmospheric world. A warping of dimensions to the ambient, tuneful place that is Shuteye Unison.
I've heard that the group is already at work writing and recording their next album for the Park and Records label, an eco-friendly music venture based outside of San Francisco. If the six songs on this extended EP are any inclination of the majestic beauty that is still to come, I'll be there. Wood crackling in the fireplace, my window open to allow in the chill of the autumn night, my stereo turned up loud for the music to engulf me, and as the boys suggest, a Guiness in my hand.
Autumn. Always my favorite time of year.
- The Ripple Effect
This CD first caught our attention because it is on the Parks and Records label. We have made particular mention of this cool little label in the past because the folks running it seem to have the right ideas about making music as well as the world in general. Not only that, they also seem to have the right idea about what constitutes good music. Speaking of...Shuteye Unison is an interesting new band. These folks create slightly hazy melodic progressive pop/rock that sounds something like a cross between Pinback and Starflyer 59. Shuteye Unison is the trio consisting of Daniel McKenzie, Jon Fee, and Jake Krohn all of whom are also involved in other musical projects. This self-titled CD is short...lasting just over half an hour. But these six songs are extremely strong and hold up to many repeated spins. Cool, catchy, thought provoking stuff for intelligent listeners. Recommended. (Rating: 5++)
- Babysue.com
Its (Shutyeye Unison's) just-released debut is festooned with dreamy guitar and melodic bass, and hushed vocals riding coolly over the beautiful yet somewhat melancholic terrain.
- East Bay Express
The album is flexible on many levels. It's complicated enough to be dissected if you're so disposed, but can just as easily be experienced as a passive ride. It's broad and expansive, yet simultaneously intimate. It is every bit as complicated as you want it to be, yet no more so than you'd like (no matter where you choose to draw that line). Shuteye Unison is one of those rare bands that seems poised for film scoring. They capture moods without being focused on hooks or cleverness. It's not a riff, but a feeling that this album burns into your brain.
- Bob Vinyl
Post-rock has a history! Seemingly the most ahistorical of the many contemporary veins of indie rock, this stuff is now divisible into distinct eras and movements. While some groups seized upon the quiet/loud dynamics and abrasive chord structures of pioneering Kentucky band Slint, others based their sound on the jazzy exploration of Tortoise and the various Kinsella projects. Some bands bridge the gap between plodding metal and air experimentation. These guys, Shuteye Unison, are reminiscent of mid-period Mogwai, with plenty of '90s emo influence thrown in. This is a successful, seemingly effortless debut from three veteran Northwest indie rockers. Shuteye Unison are a three-piece, and they make good use of their limited instrumentation. Chiming guitar figures and vocal counterpoints create memorable melodies, no small achievement within this style. Meanwhile the drums and bass lay down a compellingly energetic rhythmic base. There are feedback swells aplenty. Most of these songs stay fairly even, both in structure and and volume, ceding the spotlight to the very nice emo-ish vocalizing. "Fields Landing" is the exception that proves the rule -- here the noodly guitar line gives way to a series of violent syncopated hits that shatters the carefully structured groove before settling into a louder version of same. Released via bassist Jon Fee's ecologically centered label Parks and Records, this comes packaged simply in a recycled cardboard sleeve, adorned with a simple screenprinted logo and track listing. The organic feel of the music, the sense that they were created out of some free-form jamming, is complemented by the DIY packaging, just as some of the lyrical themes are reflected in the label's mission statement. This is a compelling listen, which benefits from a completeness and attention to detail evident in both the music and the way it is present. (7.5 / 10)
- 30music.com
“Tomorrow’s Five Horizons” gloriously kicks in after the instrumental waves of the opener “Crf030608″. The song is rapturous in its scope as it brings to mind the tendencies of bands like Autolux and Silversun Pickups. The seven-minute “Fields Landing” starts off quietly with a spoken word piece once again portraying the band’s ability to create their own space and time. The song is almost post-rock in its patient approach. “Latin Metrics” and “Slow Ravens” continue where “Tomorrow’s Five Horizons” left off. The band is simply hypnotizing with the striking moods they create.
- Sound as Language
Add a little fire and water and San Francisco trio Shuteye Unison could be one of the few bands to incorporate all four elements into its
being. With its debut on the new Bay Area indie label Parks and Records — which was co-founded by bassist/vocalist Jon Fee and espouses a rather grounded mission that includes recycled album packaging and contributions for environmental preservation — it certainly has the earth part down. And with soaring shoegaze melodies awash in cloudgrazing bliss, there’s enough air circulating in the band’s sound to make any listener feel like flying in euphoria.
Fee and guitarist/vocalist Daniel McKenzie conjure lush sonic soundscapes, less rooted in the post-punk percussion of their previous band, The Rum Diary (now on hiatus). With Jake Krohn (The Action Design) on drums, they craft a rather noteworthy offering of dream-pop here that bursts in classic 4AD ethereality — from the tone-setting ambient instrumental “CRF 030608” to the cinematic “Fields Landing,” which builds from a sample of backwoods film dialogue, Indian drones and lingering, Sigur Ros-like wails into a paced post-rock meditation on distortion and liberation: “Once you’re in a crash / It’s always too soon to land.”
Feedback obfuscates some lyrics with high-toned falsettos blending into the scenery and whispers and breaths becoming instruments on their own, as on “Latin Metrics” where they buoy the song’s polyrhythmic textures. When the subdued vocals peep through on epic closer “Through Dunes” — which is saturated with a My Bloody Valentine melodic glow, hollers taken from a real-life rally and noisy fuzz layers — they beckon listeners to freedom: “Lose yourself in a crowd / Before you can be found.” Barely passing the half-hour mark, Shuteye Unison’s debut culminates into an intensely gratifying listen that breezes by — before you know it, the wind flow you’ve been caught up in safely guides you to touch back down on Earth.
- West Coast Performer
Atmospheric rock can be pretty hit or miss -- all too often, the music sounds too distant to leave a lasting impression or serve as anything more than background noise. Granted, it's not easy to create something that stands out while still sounding, I dunno, aloof and spaced out. But sometimes a band comes along that does a nice job of honing in on that dynamic and creating a record that fits the bill for how good music within this genre should sound. Today, Shuteye Unison is that band and their self-titled debut is pretty enjoyable.
The segue from instrumental intro "Crf030608" into "Tomorrow's Five Horizons" is seamless. The jagged guitars utilized here remind this reviewer of something off The Devil and God are Raging Inside Me, and the vocal approach employed here is soft and soothing, complementing the aforementioned guitars nicely instead of overpowering them. The activity in the rhythm section increases in the song's last minute, with forceful pounding drums and plenty of cymbal crashes that build tension. The song ends there which is slightly disappointing, but the build-up was strong enough for it to not be a huge detractor.
"Fields Landing" is one of two opuses on the record, a seven and a half minute epic with positively haunting vocal effects, droning keyboards and a gently strummed guitar that set a rather somber tone in the song's first half. About five minutes into the song, distorted guitars kick in accompanied by heavy, crashing drums. The soft vocals sound more distant than ever here, but part of me thinks that was the point.
"Latin Metrics" and "Slow Ravens" are the next two tracks here, the former a dancy, almost Pinback-esque jam rife with interesting percussion and the latter a simpler, slower ballad that features more distorted guitars toward the end of the song to create an effective quiet/loud dynamic.
"Through Dunes" closes out this record on a high note, and despite its 9 and a half minute running time never feels too long or too forced. The vocals are once again, rather distant and echoy, creating an ambiance enhanced to near perfection by the restrained guitar tones and sporadic drumming. Over six minutes go by before heavy, low-end Hum-esque guitar and drums kick in and the juxtaposition of that and the strange background noise makes for an entertaining listen.
At six songs and 31 minutes, this release is somewhere between an EP and a full-length but regardless it never really runs out of breath before the finish line. Shuteye Unison have created something awfully ambitious and managed to make it distinct and engaging without sounding forced or contrived.
- Punknews.org
...intricate, dreamy post-rock, much to the side of Pinback, Silversun Pickups and other such contemporaries.
- The Deli Magazine
Shuteye Unison sound a little like The Charlatans if they signed to Deep Elm rather than going down the baggy Manchester indie route. Maybe it's me but the vocals sound a tonne like Tim Burgess. It must be me. Maybe I'm going deaf. Or I'm stupid. Anyway, this is a very atmospheric record, almost dream-like in places as the vocals whisper away in the background and the guitars, bass and drums create a hypnotic beat in the foreground. It's good, but not great - I can see why a lot of people would enjoy this but it's not taken as much of a hold on me as I'd hoped. 'Tomorrow's Five Horizons' drifts along and builds and builds and builds but never quite reaches the crescendo you'd hope for. 'Latin Metrics' is very similar as the single parts all sound fantastic and the vocals do the job they are meant to but, in my opinion, it doesn't quite hit the spot and the drift never turns into a bang. I'd just like some kind of outpouring of emotion, it's like the band are content with bottling it all up. Either that or I enjoy louder music a bit too much. Like The Appleseed Cast? I think you may enjoy these guys too. (3/5 Stars)
- Punktastic
So I got this in the mail and it sat on my desk for a week. It’s a busy time for me, and as I write this in fact I’m dragging my way through a work day before leaving for a short holiday vacation tomorrow. Sorry it took me a while to get to this.
ANYWAY, Shuteye Unison’s S/T album drifted through my headphones the first time and I have to say, I was impressed right off the bat. It’s an ambitious attempt that, even though at a certain point it definitely gets a little grandiose, is soft, ambient and intricate, to the point that I could definitely trick myself into thinking it was actually a soundtrack to a rainy morning as I waited for the subway to go to work. It’s an interesting record and definitely in the upper-crust of soft experimental-influenced indie music. It’s like an extremely melodic Fugazi-esque sound, with intricate guitar and bass lines that don’t sound like pissant music school nerd noodling, which is something that I definitely appreciate.
In general I’d push this around if you’re into almost sadly beautiful and ambient music without too much technicality. The vocals are sparse but it’s not instrumental, the songs can be long but not ridiculously so. It’s not a top favorite of mine but it definitely made me stop for a second and go “whoa”.
- Fistfight at the Arthouse
Trying to describe what Shuteye Unison are trying to achieve in their self titled EP is a difficult thing to do. Perhaps they are aiming for nothing more than to purely create music, noise and sounds to please themselves and have no concern for anything or anyone outside this aim. The six songs offered on this EP give nothing away, at points they are beautiful and ambitious, and on other occasions they seem to be following their own tails, circling themselves and repeating the process. It is hard to believe that they are looking for a reaction of complete neutrality but this is the feeling that keeps returning to me when I listen to their music.
Formed in early 2007, San Francisco’s Shuteye Unison is two parts The Rum Diary and one part The Action Design. Needing to fulfill live commitments with The Rum Diary, Daniel McKenzie (Vocals/Guitar) and Jon Fee (Vocals/Bass) recruited Jake Krohn (Drums) to do this before The Rum Diary went on an indefinite hiatus. From the ashes of this band the three musicians began to write and record material and Shuteye Unison was born, an alt-rock, shoe gazing dream of reverb, solid bass lines and rhythmic drum beats.
When listening to this band the word ‘dreamy’ pops up time and time again as the best way to describe the emotions evoked when listening to what is on offer here. The vocals are hushed and whispered as if Daniel and Jon are loving parents to a new born child, trying to sooth it off to sleep after a particularly troublesome night. Almost ghostly and haunting in places they are not trying to make a statement or press a message, but simply blending with the music and becoming another instrument.
As beautiful as the music is at times you do get the feeling that it lacks any real direction or conviction. The first two tracks show this, both separate but they are essentially the same song, with Crf030608 acting as the introduction to Tomorrow’s Five Horizons. The song slowly builds up to a strong finish and then suddenly just scatters out into nothing, this comes as a disappointment because with so much preparation going on throughout Tomorrow’s Five Horizons you feel that it was building up to more, but simply passes on without so much of a whisper, a minor storm in a tea cup before moving on. Much of the EP left me feeling this way, that many of the songs were building with promise but simply failing to deliver much impact on me.
This EP does show some really nice ideas from Shuteye Unison and has it’s highlights, Slow Ravens and Latin Metrics of particular note due to their strength and hook, but much of it left me feeling deflated and with the feeling that Shuteye Unison have so much to offer but they appear to be holding back.
- Power of Pop
Released by the cleverly named Parks and Records earlier in the year, this quaint album from SHUTEYE UNISON is, coincidentally, all about the shuteye. That doesn't necessarily mean the six tracks here bore the listener enough to induce sleep, but they are definitely quite relaxed, enough so that even the most hyper person would be inclined to chill for a moment. The band works with a style of shoegazing indie rock that THE APPLESEED CAST perfected on their Two Conversations, except SHUTEYE UNISON write longer songs with less vocals. This combination means that there is plenty of time for the band's instrumentalists to create aurally-pleasing soundscapes that can be light and twinkly ("Latin Metrics") or surprisingly forceful and reminiscent of heavier post-punk bands like PELICAN or RED SPAROWES ("Slow Ravens"). The band is at its best when injecting a little more melody into their songs, as they do during the opening bits of "Tomorrow's Five Horizons." The band's songs are clearly more memorable when they are able to do this. In addition, the vocals become more important to the song, which is much needed on an album that otherwise leaves the vocals low in the mix. The difference between an album like this versus one like Two Conversations is that it was written by a young band which still has a few songwriting kinks to work out in order to create something as memorable and with as much longevity as one a veteran band could write. Fortunately, this brief introduction proves that SHUTEYE UNISON has all the potential in the world to do something like that, so long as they continue to build off of the quiet/loud dynamics that make their music so captivating already.
- Pastepunk
Anyone who has spent any time trying to be a “working” musician by writing, recording, and selling an album has been told this basic nugget of music biz wisdom by a number of industry insiders: If you want your album to get noticed, you gotta have your best material up front. You gotta immediately grab the record label intern’s attention, or the reviewer’s attention, or they aren’t going to listen past the first 15 seconds.
Of course, plenty of bands violate this conventional wisdom every day, and many of them still get plenty of attention. At this point, there’s nothing revolutionary about, say, starting your album with a minute and 49 seconds of swelling ambient noise. That point notwithstanding, it still takes a certain amount of dedication to your particular artistic vision to buck the industry’s prescriptions and just do your own thing. After all, many, many (dare I say the vast majority?) of musicians are mostly in it for the attention and the fame and money they’re hoping will follow that attention, and are therefore only too happy to tailor their sound to whatever helps them “make it” in the music biz.
So when I got Shuteye Unison’s untitled debut EP in the mail and tossed it in my CD player, you could definitely say I was a little shocked when, somewhere around the 30 second mark, I realized these guys were taking their time, letting the ambient noise get good and swollen, before launching into the first song proper. By the 1:49 mark, I was duly impressed. Not because I was blown away by their novel sound or anything, but because this opening track says to me, “We are artists first and foremost.”
The question now, of course, is: Did the rest of the album deliver on the art?
Yes indeed, Shuteye Unison delivers. Of the six tracks in total, the opener is the only one composed entirely of ambient noise. The rest of the songs defintely have an atmoshperic quality, and there are several interludes that resort to the pure noise. But the songs are more properly described as a sort of indie psychedelic pop rock.
After the minute and 49 seconds of ambience that opens the album, “Tomorrow’s Five Horizons” seems to charge right out of the gate – though of course I mean that in relative terms. A driving bass lick starts it off, and I love how it just comes bubbling up out of the noise. Then the chiming, reverb-soaked guitars come in, and the somehow simultaneously soaring but whispery vocals take over. It all has a rather sublime feel. Even when it’s at its most hard charging, there’s a sense of detachment, an awareness of something larger than the exigencies of this song, like these aren’t even songs at all but indie psych pop dispatches from some astral plane.
The intro to “Fields Landing” brings the tempo back down to a crawl and imports some samples of a dude talking, too, a nice touch. It lends an experimental feel to this brief interlude before, once again, the reverb-drenched guitars come in, this time with a crunchiness that adds a satisfying heft to the song. As the tempo starts to slow down at the end of the song, the drum beat and the bouncing bass line remain in lockstep and you also realize these guys have serious chops in addition to a finely honed sense of craft. And no surprise, since Shuteye Unison is comprised of veterans of several other Bay Area bands, including The Rum Diary, Built for the Sea, and The Action Design.
If I was forced to pick a standout track from this album that is too consistently good to really have a standout, I’d say “Latin Metrics” is it. The bass line is, at times, just so damn melodic it hurts. I love it when a band can bring a bass line to the foreground and lodge it firmly in your head.
What makes this album even easier to like is that it’s out on Parks and Records, a green record label based right here in the Bay Area. Last year they made donations to the National Parks Conservation Association, the National Forest Foundation, and Friends of the Urban Forest out of their proceeds. Local and green? I know what you’re thinking and, no, it doesn’t get any better than that.
- WireTapMusic
