Trans Am

This six song EP of previously unreleased Trans Am material was originally only made available in Australia to coincide with the band’s first tour on that continent. After seeing vocals arise in the mix on their last Thrill Jockey release Future World, perhaps these Washington DC boys thought it would be best to really flex their vocal muscle on the other side of the world. Starting off with some novelty vocorder funk, the second track continues with a live favourite from their recent North American tour called “Slow Response,” which contains a hooky vocal chorus and some of that churning rock riffage they do best. “Surface To The Sun” takes the band into Tangerine Dream territory with some progressive old-fi explorations, also with vocals. We even get some discordant emo screaming on the hard beat-driven mix of “When The Method Is Right.” This respite from the relentless pummel of their recent full-length releases, is a more accurate reflection of the band’s great live performances that mix power rock, precision groove, hard beats, humour, and yes, even vocals.