Kissed by an Animal Middle Distance LP
This marks the third LP by KISSED BY AN ANIMAL, and it comes complete with their signature of a gatefold cover with bright, exploding psychedelic artwork covering every corner. One of my favorite things about this band is that with each record, they get incrementally better, but not to say so much better that their original sound is lost (as it is with some). Interestingly, Middle Distance does have a slightly more aggressive quality to it, and some of the past playfulness has been abandoned, but I imagine that is reflective in a bunch of stuff for a lot of us these days. They are distilling power pop, pop punk, and Indie styles and still honing their own path with the unique vocals of Dima Drjuchin. The songs themselves continue to flop between everyday beauty and occurrences of larger chunks of despair, all put to humble and memorable little licks. It should be noted that Handstand Records never ceases to surprise me with not only the quality of what they put out, but also the variation of their roster. You might not like everything that they put out, but be damn sure what they touch has quality behind it. A chef’s kiss to KISSED BY AN ANIMAL’s new LP.