Miranda Taylor and Larry Ragone are Exmaid. The duo from New Jersey recently released Sorcery. The band says, "The album is largely about the inexplicable and otherworldly connections we can feel with one another," as well as "about relationships beginning and ending." That’s a broad concept that’s filtered through distorted rock.
When I was in high school in the mid ’90s I was a big fan of heavy grunge bands like The Melvins and Mudhoney. Exmaid felt like a band I would have gotten into all those years ago. The band delivers a good amount of crunch and rocking out which is juxtaposed against the much more softly delivered vocals. That being said Taylor doesn't feel reserved in her vocal approach. There are certain songs where she belts it out more. The album starts with “Mary” which is a solid opener but a bit of a slow burn. It revolves around guitar and vocals for about the first three quarters of the song before some rocking out occurs. “Moth” felt like a highlight. This song in particular soars and combines elements of shoegaze as well as ’70s inspired metal. I liked the way the song builds - the vocals, and drumming worked together to create epic crescendos. “Lite” is an infectious song. There is no denying that vocal melody is memorable. “Dead” and “Swim '' continue to deliver the goods with fairly straightforward songs that are really well delivered and written. “Moldy” has single written all over it. It’s a catchy song I think a lot of people would remember the melody to. “Prez” and “Jane'' continue to build a signature sound for the band. “Best” brings down the distortion a bit at first and I liked the change in texture and tone. They close with another highlight called “Meow” which contains some of the best guitar work. There is no denying the engineering and production is top notch. It’s clear but distorted and obviously engineered by experienced engineers. The band accomplished a lot with this release. They weave a cohesive foundation and after the ten songs I felt like I had a good impression of the band's sound. On top of that I felt these songs were accessible and just a pleasure to listen to. Recommended.
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