somesurprises Leaves a Shimmering Wake of Sound On “Perseids”
According to NASA, the Perseid meteor shower is considered to be one of the best meteor showers of the year. It peaks around Mid-August, making it more easily viewed on warm summer nights. The meteors are radiant and swift, typically leaving long wakes of color and light as they streak through the sky.
It’s fitting that somesurprises’ new LP would share a similar name, as it’s a glimmering, celestial force.
After 5 years, the Seattle group has returned with this impressive release on Doom Trip Records. The album is an introspective journey that feels as though you are hurtling across a night sky to an unknown destination. It reaches into the realms of hazy shoegaze, heavy psych, and soft dream pop with rich layers of sound that scale from quiet, thoughtful moments to commanding crescendos.
Each band member’s incredible playing contributes to the expansive, otherworldly soundscape. Natasha El-Sergany’s vocals are at the forefront, ethereal yet grounding. Josh Media’s guitar and synth work shimmers and cuts as bassist Laura Seniow and drummer Nico Sophiea carry the rhythm section with a stalwart complexity. Not to mention, there are stunning contributions from cellist Lori Goldston and composer Jessika Kenney.
The journey starts with the opening track, “Be Reasonable,” which trickles in like a transmission from another world. You’re slowly engulfed by the warm sound as El-Sergany’s voice glides in repeating, “Be reasonable” and flows smoothly with vocalizations throughout. Medina’s guitar comes to the forefront mid-way through with a punchy reverb as the song rises like a silvery atmospheric wave until it drifts off into the distance.
Pushing forward, the energies continue to ascend with songs like “Why I Stay.” Haunting and contemplative, it opens with sweeping guitar as El-Sergany explains, “You may wonder why I stay/But I know if I go, I won’t come back.” You feel the push and pull, the weight of a decision. Sophia’s drums steadily build in the background as everything crests. There’s a slow float back down as El-Sergany repeats the opening line.
Though many of the songs burn thick and brightly, there are delicate points of reflection with instrumental tracks “Snakes and Ladders” and “Untitled.” The songs are a momentary breath, like a wave pulling back to the sea: gentle yet supernatural with cosmic synths and dreamy, distant guitar. This is similarly felt on “Ship Circles,” where Goldston’s cello is beautifully paired with Seniow’s bass in a way that makes you feel like you’re floating through some type of intergalactic ocean.
Everything culminates on the title track. Guitar notes stream in quickly and accelerate to a crushing torrent of sound like you’re in the rush of a meteor-streaked sky. Kenney’s voice reverberates in, reciting a poem that is her interpretation of an original by the Persian poet Hafez. It describes the image of meteors in Islamic spiritual tradition, which symbolize the striking down of demons from the heavens. Sounds continue to build with shrieking cello, crushing guitar, and heavy drums as unrecognizable calls are heard in the distance. Before you know it, the bright lights across the sky slowly fade, leaving behind a shimmering wake of sound.
Perseids is out now. You can catch somesurprises at their release show at the Tractor Tavern on Saturday April 20 alongside Coral Grief and Anthers.