Artist: Engineers

Album: In Praise of More

Oh, Shoegaze, you will always have a special place in my heart. This week I have been in love with that genre, which I have not visited in a while. I wanted to share my joy over the newest addition to my music collection; I am absolutely head over heels for Engineers!

They have been in my brain for days now and they make me feel amazing. If I had to pick a band to write the soundtrack to my life, then these would be the guys. The album In Praise of More is epic. I feel like I have been submerged in a blissful and bittersweet pool of sound! I haven’t been this excited about this kind of sound since I heard Super Furry Animals all those years ago.

 This album stands apart from Engineers’ other albums, not because it’s better but because it’s different somehow. Every melody is a breath of fresh air. This album really makes their name ironic in so many ways; the flow of the music is celestial and fantastical. The sensations of each track breathe so effortlessly and there is nothing mechanical about it. It moves from one side to the other like water. The only thing they could possibly be engineering is a fantasy realm of purity and space.

When the dream-pop elements of the music start in each song, it will marvel your eardrums. Your brainwaves will be perplexed trying to figure out how such a synthetic sound can sound so natural and whole.

 On top of this album already taking you to another level of amazement, they throw something else at you: YOU GET A SECOND, INSTRUMENTAL-ONLY VERSION! Yeah, that’s right, they let us have another version of this amazing album. I have listened to both versions several times over, and I cannot tell you which one is more fascinating. I am telling you, if you like dream-pop even a little, this album will have you right from the start.

At no time do you tire of the sound experience they take you on. I tend to get a little weary of synth sounds and need a break, but not with this one, my fellow nerds. Not. This. One. You really are in praise of more! For that, I give this album 8 axioms out of 10 (I don’t know if that makes sense, so pardon to all the engineering nerds out there). Yet another win for England!

If you love what you read or heard, then I strongly encourage you to listen to this album. Your ears are begging for a vacation like this! Listen to everything these fellows have created for you, for that matter, because they are all amazing in their own way.