Tape Review: IMAGES’ s/t

IMAGES

s/t

(Painted Blonde)

Madison, Wisconsin might not be the first place you’d think of when discussing garage pop of the sun-baked variety, but on her debut EP, IMAGES delivers just that with a set of four songs perfect for road-tripping through the Sun Belt.

IMAGES’ largely plots her course with her guitar work, which is characterized by a psychedelic but wholly unobfuscated twang, which when combined with her hazy, fuzzy vocals can nearly induce a sensation similar to a dehydration-induced hallucination one might experience wandering through the desert. But, like a really relaxing one. A liberal use of tambourine also aids in this auditory aesthetic. Call it ‘mirage pop’.

There’s not a dud to be found on this one, but of particular note is “Calgary Rose”, which along with featuring some excellent lyrical passages (“Calgary Rose, I found your ashes in my hands / Calgary Rose, I thought I’d missed my chance / Even the clearest rivers have a muddy mouth / Calgary Rose, I thought you’d look us out”) includes a surprisingly loud, distortion-heavy, and direct guitar solo courtesy of Painted Blonde owner Jason Lambeth (who records as Red Pants), creating a fascinating contrast with IMAGES’ clean tones and winding melodies.

A light, breezy, and highly enjoyable introduction to a promising new artist on a promising and relatively new label.

 

Favorite track: “Calgary Rose”

 

Rating: Recommended

 

You can purchase IMAGES’ s/t here.