Tetsu the Phoenix – See You Around

Last summer I was lucky enough to be sent the debut EP from Northampton (Massachusetts) band Baleen. I was absolutely enthralled with its new take on the shoegaze and grunge sounds of my teenage years. Since then, the band have shaken things up a bit, passed their instruments about and returned with a new album, now under the moniker Tetsu the Phoenix.  

By all accounts the band have approached this album with a different lens. Citing parallels like DIIV and Alcest it would appear we are in for a heavier sound than on the Baleen EP. The album is entitled See You Around and has a very interesting story at its core. I’ll let the band tell you themselves.

Sure enough, the heavier aesthetic is instantly apparent in the intro to opening track, ‘Mr Sunshine’. The Philly vibes are real as mountainous guitars scream and squall in melodic feedback. The dynamics are spot on as the guitars dip in and out over verse and chorus. This track gives me goosebumps every time. Think of a kinda cross between Just Mustard and Nothing and your halfway there.

The feels get ramped up on ‘You Die, I Die’. This one is more vocal led and leans into the epic with a chorus that is deeply affecting. If you don’t fall to your knees when they sing “If you die, I die. We made a deal; we made a deal” on top of that soaring guitar then I can’t help ya. This song has single written all over it and is a perfect intro for someone new to the band.

‘Wanting’ veers into a swampy, more doom gaze feel. The lighter moments here are much lighter but when things get fuzzy, man it’s really dirty. To me, those parts take me away to some vast desert with an infinite horizon. It’s that transportive quality of these songs that I just love.

We enter the song cycle next with the explosive ‘21 China’. This is a more exploratory song structure which is led by a dazzling display from the drums. The vocals impossibly drape themselves over this complex rhythm like some sorcerer’s cloak. Just as you are lulled by the spell though, the song erupts again into exultant guitars and pulverising bass. This album really keeps you on your toes, who knows what’s next.

Luckily, I do, it’s the effervescent ‘Ratlady’ A song built around a bright and melodic lead guitar hook contrasted with a fuzzed-out backline. The elongated syllables in the vocal delivery lend the track an almost drowsy somnolence. That contrast really makes this one of the albums stand out tracks for my money.

As an album See You Around has ambition core to its DNA and as if to embody that whole approach next up, they deliver ‘Full Moon on the Wane’. This song is stadium size and is destined to be a live favourite. It’s the perfect balance between melody and madness. The guitars trade off between that glide guitar sound and carefully picked lead line. The vocals are more up front and as such are more impactful. It really is another little bit of magic.

The oddly titled ‘Sheeps, A Man Appears’ follows and its stream of consciousness lyrics flow and fly in equal parts. Once more we’re kept on our toes as the song takes off at pace only to drop down to a minimal guitar line and vocals for the closing minute or so. I love how the band aren’t afraid to introduce us to new textures and sounds this late into the album. I find that utterly exhilarating and I wish more bands would do it.

Things stay strictly down tempo for the angelic sound of ‘About a Beach’. This is a much more unsaturated sound even though the guitars remain on full fuzz effect. How are they doing this? More sorcery I tell you! That cyclical chord sequence is utterly hypnotic and I wanted it to last about twice as long. I suppose that’s how they’ll keep me coming back to listen again and again.

The album closes out on the Mary Chain influenced ‘Bound to Disappear’. The fuzz driven guitar is maxed out and chugs along as the vocal sits on top cutting a really beautiful melody over it. Hats off for rhyming “garage” with “arbitrage” by the way. It’s a fitting way to round out this utterly exceptional record and send you back to listen again.

I’ll openly admit that I haven’t read Haruki Murakami’s The Trilogy of the Rat series however the good news is you don’t have to in order to appreciate this album. For fans of the books, I’m positive the lyrics will hit you differently but take it from me, they hit you no matter what. Musically the band have created a piece of shoegaze heaven and it’s going to resonate with fans of the genre instantly. There’s much more to enjoy on here though so fans of Radiohead will enjoy it as much as say, fans of My Bloody Valentine. What I love the most is that the album has cohesion. These songs hang together and support each other so well. This isn’t just a collection of songs. It’s an album, an honest to god, thought-out, well-structured album. For that alone it deserves your immediate attention and following that, your undying affection.

See You Around is available now digitally and on vinyl from Strange Library Records. Make sure to follow the Tetsuo the Phoenix Bandcamp page.