Math Rock

EP Review: Flicker Rate – Skylight

Flicker Rate Skylight
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17-year-old Spencer Bassett, a clearly talented guitarist and songwriter has released three EPs under the moniker Flicker Rate. Released in April 2018, Skylight EP is a non-stop showcase of clean jangly guitar work.

From the outset, my mind went to the musical DNA shared by bands like This Town Needs Guns and Long Island Sound. There is an almost jovial quality to the guitar parts as the melodies bounce along, in the same way that the pizzicato strings convey a similar emotion in Holiday for Strings by David Rose and his Orchestra (1942).

The musicianship is excellent with the production keeping the listeners focus where it should be. Elements fade in and out of focus thanks to the mix and that fills the void where one usually is expectant of vocals, but in this instance, the instrumentation does an excellent of carrying the songs. The songs, well paced, are over before the ideas become stale. In fact, the whole EP is over before you know it.

Well worth listening to if you like the instrumental math rock style or are in the mood for some light and cheery relaxation music.

Short and sweet.

Flicker Rate links:

Bandcamp: https://flickerrate.bandcamp.com/album/skylight-ep

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flickerrate/

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/flickerrate/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flickerratemusic/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnKvPbjUogHvNR6MHBkZAnA

This review was originally posted by Murray Stace at his site Relative Silence

EP Review: Flicker Rate – Reframe EP

Flicker Rate Reframe Ep Cover Art
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There’s no shortage of talent when you scroll through the artists that submit their work for review here at Will Not Fade, and Spencer Bassett is no exception. At just 17, Bassett has already released 2 solo post-rock EPs under the name Flicker Rate – a project that encompasses instrumental styles like post-rock, prog and math rock.

One doesn’t need to look far to see where Bassett got his talent from. His father is John Bassett, known for his music released under the guise of Arcade Messiah, KingBathmat and his own name. Bassett Sr. played a part in this album too, co-producing with his son, and take on the roles of mixer and masterer.

But it wouldn’t be fair to judge Spencer’s work under his father’s shadow, so I’ll discuss the Reframe EP on its own merits.

Spencer Bassett Flicker RateTo begin with, Reframe is a step up from the eponymous first EP. Although this first EP was a strong début, I disliked the dissonant tones and overt glitches used in the track “Evident”. By comparison, Reframe sounds crisp and clean.

Title track “Reframe” featured strong confident drumming, with guitar lines layering over the top progressively. The clean guitar picking is a nice change from the crescendocore wash that gets overused in post-rock.

Following track “Summit” isn’t so much clean, per say, with its heavy distortion and washing cymbals. But the guitar lines still stand out. The clarity helps Spencer to show off his technical abilities, choosing to place his talents at the forefront, and not hidden behind effect pedals and muddy distortion.

My highlight on the EP is “Spectrum”. It takes me into a happy place, like most of the upbeat math rock I’ve recently fallen in love with. I need more music like this in my life, and I’m happy to take recommendations of any music that captures the sound of joy as well as this song.

If Spencer Bassett is able to write and release two quality EPs of this calibre as a teenager, then imagine the potential recordings he will release in the future! Reframe is brilliantly written, recorded and mixed. The crisp recordings and avoidance of post-rock clichés has made this a refreshing EP worth checking out.

Flicker Rate Links

Bandcamp: https://flickerrate.bandcamp.com/album/reframe-ep

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flickerrate/

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/flickerrate/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flickerrate/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnKvPbjUogHvNR6MHBkZAnA

 

Joseph James