GusGus: Polydistortion

GusGus: Polydistortion

At times too ambitious for its own good, this 65-minute debut from the Icelandic nine-piece band GusGus sounds like the work of at least three distinct factions. Polydistortion bounces back and forth among poles of drum-and-bass and trance, eerily accented folk, and quirky rock. With at least one female singer and several different male voices—including a falsetto—GusGus, on one level at least, recalls The Sugarcubes, Iceland's best-known musical export. Though a few too many tracks are excessively long and repetitive, Polydistortion's odd flourishes are generally strange enough to make interesting even the most banal drum-box beating. The album's most haunting song, "Is Jesus Your Pal?," covers the same thematic ground as XTC's "Dear God," but with a considerably darker heart.

 
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