Dumbells Up Late With LP
Leaving the sparse promise of their brief 2021 demo behind, DUMBELLS’ debut LP is endowed with an immersive, full sound that lends itself to the flood of dreamy tunes therein. Comprised of personnel from various notable acts of recent vintage, these Aussie upstarts fuse elements of 1960s sparkle, 1990s fuzz, and many moods in between into their sharp, imaginative, and organic indie flavor, and it’s easy to get lost in the album’s kaleidoscopic arrangements. Lavishly textured, the songs are simultaneously vibrant and deep, each one propelled by a charming poetic simplicity. There are many memorable moments, like the triumphant and vaguely medieval lead riff of “Automaton,” the unbearable catchiness of “Hammer,” the weighty romance of “Sweetest Reminder,” and the percolating spaghetti western climax of “Bubbles,” to cite just a few, but the record is most impressive when digested as a complete ride. It’s an obscenely good first album that plays like a greatest hits compilation, and when the fluid and hopeful harmony of the psychedelic “Doorbell” fades out, it feels more like a “to be continued” than a proper “the end.”