Imagine you’re a band from France. You’ve been touring a lot and you’ve released a full length album and a split over the last couple of years and you’ve worked hard and saved up enough money to go to Brooklyn in the United States to record a new full length album at Translator Audio studios with Andrew Schneider (of Unsane, Keelhaul, Converge fame among others). You’ve made it to Brooklyn and everything’s going well, but then it turns into October 29th 2012 and Hurricane Sandy hits the East Coast of the US. Destroying many things, including Translator Audio studios and the entire studio and band’s backline, gear and everything.
This happened to French heavy noise rock band Sofy Major when they were recording their new album Idolize. For a while they wondered around the streets of New York not really knowing what to do. Luckily for the band (and for us), the Brooklyn indie music scene came to the rescue and the recording eventually took place with the help of Dave Curran (of Unsane, Pigs) and Andrew Schneider’s perseverance. The result is a top of the noise rock shelf album with a handful of very decent tracks and another handful of brilliant tracks.
As said, Sofy Major is a heavy noise rock band, but there are plenty of metal and hardcore influences in their sound, with tracks ‘Comment’, ‘Steven The Slow’ (which features Dave Curran lyrics and vocals), ‘Bbbbreak’, ‘Coffee Hammam’ and album closer ‘Power Of Their Voice’ (a great Portobello Bones cover; only included on the European release) being good examples. Other tracks such as ‘UMPKK Pt.2’, ‘Slow And Painful’, ‘Seb’ and album opener ‘Aucune Importance’ are of the more slower and nosier calibre.
Andrew Schneider did a fantastic job producing Idolize as it has a very natural and organic sound to it. The drums sound as if you’re just standing next the kit in the studio and the bass has this almost Albini-like sound to it, which makes comparisons with Shellac and The Jesus Lizard unavoidable, this not being a bad thing in my book, but more the contrary. It is a sound I love and that makes noise rock so attractive.
I am sure the events on that October 29th would have had a huge impact on the two Matthieus (one on drums and one on bass and vocals) and Sébastien on guitar, as this no doubt affects the songs written and recorded during the process. One thing is for sure though, Sofy Major has demonstrated a huge amount of willpower and with the help of the Brooklyn music scene they managed to create a great album full of heavy bass, distorted guitar riffs and organically sounding pounding drums. It takes the motto “Support Your Local Scene” to the next level.
Idolize will be released on May 31st through Solar Flare Records and if you like your music heavy, noisy and with plenty of riffing, I’d recommend you to buy this.
