Mirrored
Mirrored makes complex music work in a surprisingly direct way. Battles builds their tracks from short guitar figures, keyboards, powerful drums, and distorted vocals. These elements sometimes seem to follow their own paths, but the rhythm holds everything together. You don't have to understand every time signature change to move along to it.
That is what makes Atlas so strong. Beneath the strange-sounding vocals is a clear, stomping rhythm, which keeps the song both quirky and easy to follow. Repetition serves a purpose here: small shifts become audible without the central movement disappearing. The track shows how the band makes its precise playing catchy.
Race : In starts off more frantically, with short, sharp accents that constantly interlock. The drums provide a solid foundation for the playful sound. Tonto also has enough power to be more than just a clever collection of sounds. The force of the playing gives those processed sounds a lively character.
Not every idea maintains that tension as well. Especially when a pattern is drawn out, curiosity about the next detail can outweigh the desire to stay with the song. Rainbow sometimes packs in more ideas than it needs. The bright mood and treated vocals can also feel overdone.
Still, there is enough space amidst all the noise. The quieter passages prevent the album from becoming merely a series of technical highlights. In the strongest songs, a recognizable movement remains steady while everything around it changes.
Mirrored brings precise playing and a strong sense of fun together. Battles demands attention, but gives rhythm, melody, and clear highlights in return. The music may be complex, but the appeal of Atlas and Tonto rarely is.
