Review: Lithics – Wendy Kraemer EP

You’ve got the gears turning now. Everything has been shifted into lock and key formation. What time is it? No time at all. These are some of the initial thoughts I had going into the “Wendy Kraemer EP”  from Lithics. There are a lot of good ideas flying around this release. There’s an urgency that presses each track further than each other. This is not to say that there is no relative corroboration between the tracks. This feels more like having each song circled around a central energy that is expanding so rapidly that it pushes the circle wider. It has a steady pulse and, somehow, arrhythmia. You can see it breathing.

This 4 piece from Portland, Oregon, have been actively playing since 2014 and the “Wendy Kraemer EP” is a collection of home recordings, snippets, demos, and cutlery. Divided into simply “Side A” and “Side B”, there’s a sense of freedom from the constraints of direct cuts and track listing. There are no rules regarding how many songs to a side or which is the best playlist. Wendy Kraemer exists best as a stream. It works perfectly as a machine of the heart. The bass lines are tight as Hell, the guitars will make you dizzy, the drums are forensic scientists, and Aubrey Hornor’s voice is goddamn hypnotic. This is a Moone Records release and it is delivered without the pretentious trappings or nostalgia framing that’s become popular among post-punk worship. Lithics are not trying to sound like anyone but themselves and it’s fucking refreshing.

“Wendy Kraemer EP” is getting released by Moone Records this coming February. So get jazzed up, suckers! Not everything has to be so doomy gloomy. In the worst of times, we always have good releases to look forward to. Until then, let’s continue to burn the state.