For several years now, people have been talking about a shoegaze revival – even if the term increasingly has little to do with the genre’s original defining traits. The brilliant songs by Hotline TNT aren’t really shoegaze either – not because they lack genre staples like ultra-distorted guitars or bubblegum pop melodies, but because Hotline TNT are, well, far too rocky for that. Especially on their explosive new album Raspberry Moon, which sounds noticeably crisper and less lo-fi than its predecessor Cartwheel – nothing here is broken or buried, the vocals are front and centre in the mix – they even throw in full-on »na-na-na« choruses. The pounding highlight »Julia’s War« thrives on fat guitars, fat melodies, fat emotions. Big, ambitious rock songs that seem to be about absolutely nothing. The music might not sound like it, but in terms of aesthetic ambition, Raspberry Moon has more in common with What’s the Story) Morning Glory?–era Oasis than with Loveless, the shoegaze bible by My Bloody Valentine.
This time around, the album was recorded as a proper band effort – whereas Cartwheel was more of a studio project led by frontman Will Anderson. Raspberry Moon is also far more refined: the second track is a synth-led interlude, and alongside blown-out distortion, there’s acoustic guitar and more. Clearly, someone set out to make a rich, multifaceted album-album – and they pulled it off. Raspberry Moon is full of music that cuts through any kind of background noise.
Raspberry Moon
