Utilizing melodic noise to illustrate both emotion and understated virtuosities of the most surreal quality, The Transonics are on a mission to embody lunar tonal lust like no band has for the better part of the last twenty years in their new EP Tides, currently out everywhere indie rock is sold and streamed this summer. Featuring modernist tunes like “Orange Sunshine,” the title cut, and the enrapturing “Midnight,” Tides uses pseudo-futurisms and rich poetic ironies to leave us utterly spellbound amidst relatively simplistic song structures. It’s a showcase for The Transonics’ talent, and collectively one of the best records I’ve heard out of their scene lately.
“Tequila,” “When You Were Mine,” and the thrashy “Getcha” have sublime color to their harmonies, and I like that none of them force the guitar/vocal relationship to the forefront of the mix intentionally. Contrarily, there’s a clandestine shift in the spotlight from the bottom-end to the carnal lust of the top in all three of these songs, further alluding to a masterful moodiness in The Transonics’ sound that I’ve wanted to hear more of since they dropped their debut just two years ago. This is absolutely more forward-thinking, and exceptionally well-rounded tonally.
The title cut, “Tequila,” and “Orange Sunshine” are more than just strong features in this tracklist; they’re more or less the identity of The Transonics captured in three songs that just as easily could have been an EP without the additional tracks here. This isn’t to say that Tides ever has the feeling of a filler-weighted record, but instead to note that this band clearly knows what their presence in the underground should be, and more importantly, how they’re going to facilitate a rise to the top of the indie heap without having to sacrifice any of their sterling ideals.
Listen to Tides below
“Getcha” has a striking physicality that we feel just as much in “When You Were Mine,” minus the big riffing of course, but it’s worth pointing out that pop influences always remain elementary to the construction of any hook included in Tides. I feel like The Transonics are more of a surreal pop act in this record than they are an outright alternative rock syndicate, but perhaps the blurry line separating the two is a part of their personality as a group as well. Their eccentricities shine up like diamonds in this record and make me curious about hearing the band play in person as soon as it’s safe to do so.
Tides is both entrancing and wonderfully cerebral in ways that a lot of other EPs have only attempted to be, and if it’s representative of what the next chapter of The Transonics’ story is going to consist of, I think we’ve only heard a taste of the magic still sitting on the horizon. The Transonics play like a meticulous and emotional band disciplined by their experiences here, and if you haven’t already taken some time to hear what they’re up to this summer, you need to do so immediately with the immersive tracklist of Tides.
