Written by Geoff Topley
Postures are a 6-piece band from Gothenburg, Sweden. They’ve been playing together since 2009, honing their sound with a view to capturing live performance in recorded form. The press release doesn’t give much more away other than trying to explain more about sounds and experimentation. One listen to the eponymously titled album sure backs up that intention, for here we have a band not afraid to experiment with all manner of sounds, rhythms and out-there melodies. One thing surprises me greatly about this PR; the lack of any mention of influences. If there had been, the main influence would surely have been the now defunct Mars Volta. The aural blitzkrieg that they frequently pitched at us has clearly had some impact in the vision of Postures, as this debut sounds almost identical to them, only fronted by a female vocalist.
So what approach to take with constructively appraising such a work of extremely complex musical dexterity? As with The Mars Volta, a certain mood needs to be reached before attempting to listen to the music. If not in the right frame of mind, the level of attention that this kind of music demands will have you reaching for the off button. There’s just too much going on in the mix to absorb.
Our album begins, and ends, with ‘Circles’, a folksy lament expertly sung by vocalist Paulina Nyström, resplendent with twinkling sounds and absolutely no indication of the hectic splurge of noise about to be unleashed on your unsuspecting eardrums. The eerie introduction subsides to the organ driven ‘Heavy Tremor’, an unrelenting onslaught of over exuberant frantic drumming that continues throughout most of the rest of the album. ‘Are We Still Breathing?’ is a splattering of 60s cop show theme tune stabs and has a melody that’s just trying a bit too hard for my liking. ‘Solipse’ and ‘Quakes’ are two live and improvised jams that enter the realms of freeform jazz and ultimately go nowhere. It’s down to ‘Falling Into Place’ to toggle my repeat play switch, a dreamy, wonderfully coo-ed vocal delivery over mellow guitar sounds and featuring a great bluesy guitar solo, our drummer thankfully taking a back seat.
The standard of playing by all on Postures is very high, technically brilliant and tight as a gnat’s ass. Listen, if the manic expression of bands like Mars Volta and Zechs Marquise are your thing, then seek out Postures, you won’t be disappointed.
