Ganser – Just Look At That Sky: Album Review

By Dominic Walsh on 25th July 2020 • ( Leave a comment )

Ganser are a quartet from Chicago. Just Look At That Sky probes the futility of striving for self-growth during these chaotic times.

Released: 31st July 2020

Label: Felte

Format: CD / LP / Digital

Just Look At That Sky is a chaotic record. Snarling guitars, throbbing bass lines and crashing drums all coalesce to create a wonderful maelstrom of noise.

Lucky opens the album in a blaze of noise rock fury. The dissonant shrieking guitar forms the base for a blistering opener. If you want a statement of intent on an album opener…look no further.

Self Service follows with a feeling of relative calm compared to the opening, however do not expect serenity. There are moments in the bass work that sound like they could live on one of U2’s first trio of albums. It’s prominent in the mix and sounds superb.

Vocal comparisons with Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth) and Poly Styrene (X-Ray Spex) are easy to draw but Nadia Garofalo and Alicia Gaines, a self-described two-headed monster who share lead vocal duties, bring their own styles to the table.

Emergency Equipment & Exits has a more standard post-punk feel to it as it opens up in a seemingly regulatory fashion. The vocals soar more than ever here. The album really hits its stride; the pace and styles that make up Just Look At That Sky really make for an interesting experience. Told You So is another riot. Snarling vocal interplay and a playfully dance style drum rhythm add another string to the already bulging Ganser bow.

Lyrically, Just Look At That Sky is fraught. These are songs that never shy away from ugliness and confusion. The spoken word style of Bad Form recalls Karen O (Yeah Yeah Yeahs). The drum and bass again conjure up a deliciously hypnotic rhythm as the guitars add the colour. Bags For Life closes out the album in joyous manner. There is brass throughout and a freedom in the music that takes this journey full circle as it sails off into the ether on waves of bass.

Having shared stages with the likes of Daughters, Oh Sees, Viagra Boys as well as Modern English, Ganser is a band that refuses to be pinned down, four individuals of diverse backgrounds functioning as a collective consciousness.

Listen to Emergency Equipment & Exits from Ganser below.