Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles

FabDave

I had heard of Crystal Castles a year or two before their album dropped and, right before the actual disc was in my hands, I was ready to declare them over. The group’s debut album is, after all, little more than a polished compilation album with a couple of rerecorded demos thrown in. But somehow, like David Lynch’s “Inland Empire”, all of the disconnected experiments merge together to create something more meaningful.

In the years since its release, it has become a bit innocuous in the indie dance scene, but the energy around the release was undeniable, and the tracks keep bobbing to the surface of the mp3 blog scene. Crystal Castles took the energy building in the 8-bit community and turned it into something more.

There is something novel about taking the 8-bit sound and translating it into a consistent, relatable album. Even as more mainstream artists are plugging in their gameboys and seeing what they can pull off, tracks like ‘Alice Practice’ and ‘Xxzxcuzx Me’ remain far beyond any imitators. Crystal Castles connect so well because they integrate the bleeps and bloops into more familiar genres. ‘Courtship Dating’ sounds like it could be a Justin Timberlake track (which is probably why he, Timbaland and 50 Cent jacked the instrumentals for Ayo Technology).

The final track on the album, ‘Tell Me What To Swallow’, surprises with its shift to soft, echoey vocals and a gently strumming guitar, letting the listener know that there are real people behind the digital mask. Their punk sensibililties are also in showcase when they want to take it there.

Alice Glass in particular, when allowed to let loose, bridges the gap between electro and punk. The denouement of ‘Crimewave’ is a reminder that the whole track started with real guitars and drums (though you’d never know it otherwise). Overall, the more alienating tracks (the ironically titled ‘Love and Caring’) fit well with the dancefloor ready fare (’Vanished’, ‘Air War’, and the subdued ‘Goodtimes’), with neither being too off-base or mainstream to ruin the flow.

The real benefit of Crystal Castles can be seen in their effective sampling. Though they clearly maintain their own sound, their music is patched together with the incredible talent of others, such as Covox, Van She, Death From Above 1979, and other tastemakers.

They have themselves inspired some incredible acts like You Love Her Coz She’s Dead and brought greater attention to 8-bit acts like Kap Bambino. If the few tracks that have been finding their way into the blogs are any indication, the next Crystal Castles album is going to be even more in your face and obtuse - and I welcome the challenge.