Melted
The melodies on Melted are easier to follow than the sound around them. Ty Segall covers his songs in distortion, feedback and strange keyboard sounds without forgetting their appeal. That contrast makes the album lively. There is always something memorable beneath the noise, while the production keeps it from becoming entirely familiar garage rock.
"Caesar" shows the balance well. Its melody is direct and the song moves with confidence. The sound remains messy enough to keep some tension in it. "Girlfriend" pushes harder, with more speed and guitar that fills the space. Segall's singing suits this emphasis on feeling rather than a tidy finish. He keeps the songs short and makes their strongest ideas clear quickly.
Some of the slower material is less effective. The title track becomes rather lost in its own haze, and the quieter repetition of "Bees" holds attention less firmly. When less happens, the melodies have to carry more than they sometimes can. The sounds remain interesting, but the songs lose some of the opening's direction.
"Imaginary Person" adds a different kind of movement. Acoustic drive and a synthesizer cutting through the guitar give it a character of its own. Later, the dirty blues of "Mrs." offers a different kind of pause. "Alone" starts slowly before choosing a chaotic ending. These changes explain why the album offers more than a series of noisy bursts. Melted works best when a good tune and an unusual sound strengthen each other. It works often enough to give this compact record character.
