In the current age of pop-culture overload, all one needs is loyalty to one’s passions and preferences to be able to sift through the overly abundant mishmash and flotsam and jetsam of wondrous things. Of course, one should also have the initiative to do the research themself. Look around. Listen closely. Try new things. Sample new sounds. Read about updates and latest news about your favorite genres. By doing so, you will realize that the music scene never really changed. It is still full of interesting bands only waiting to be discovered. One of such bands that deserve recognition, especially by lovers of Alternative Rock, Indie Pop, Shoegaze, and New Wave, is Breathe Panel.
Comprised by childhood friends Nick Green (vocals and guitar), Josh Tyler (guitar), Benjamin Reeves (drums), and Alex Turner (bass guitar), Breathe Panel was formed in 2014, in Brighton, England. Two years after releasing their first single, the young English quartet are ready to embark on a mission to ignite even greater and shinier stars, starting with their anticipated first full-length album.
Scheduled for release on July 13, 2018, via Fat Cat Records, the self-titled debut of Breathe Panel is a worthy addition to the record collection of music enthusiasts who love Indie Pop, Shoegaze, New Wave, and Alternative Rock in general. Its songs are certainly breaths of fresh sounds amidst the already comfortable and safe Pop ditties that may be heard on commercial radio these days. Breathe Panel opens with the upbeat, sweetly grating Shoegaze and echoing as well as rolling Post-Punk surge of the lovely “Carmine.” The mood relaxes for a bit with the slightly syncopated beats of “Hue,” albeit the swirling and plucked guitars are the obviously emerging defining characteristic of the band’s music. The bass-driven pulses continue with the dizzying sway and strums of the short track “Myself,” only to burst once again like flickering confetti with the frenetic and bouncy “On My Way.”
A little bit of sophistication and jazzy rhythmic excursion comes next in the form of the aptly named “Red Wine Glass.” The swimming instrumentation and vocal predisposition flows smoothly into the ensuing “I See in Colour.” After the short Dreampop-styled instrumental “Through Leaves,” Breathe Panel launches again with its big-sounding Shoegaze tendencies – “Oglala” – a kaleidoscopic sonic trip in virtual technicolor dream.
“Leading Up to It” is still in Shoegaze territories, but it is a subtle change of pace – slow burn, languid yet romantic sentiments – what may be regarded as a Dreampop ballad. The penultimate track, “Sunrise/Sunshine” then springs, bubbles, and gallops with its hypnotic allure – certainly one of the album’s strong moments. Finally, Breathe Panel wraps up its first oeuvre with the classic ’90s Indie/Shoegaze-inspired “The Time, Always,” exuding both a contemporary freshness and a sense of nostalgia.
Who said that genres die? Only the shortsighted and the fickle-minded. For those who wear their influences on their sleeves proudly and whose passion for the music that feeds their sonic spirits, there is new music to be had from any new era of music. Breathe Panel’s first offering is indeed a treat not only to the veteran aficionados of the genres that the band is operating within but also to the so-called kids these days who have inherited from their cool parents a cool taste in music. CrypticRock gives Breathe Panel 4 out of 5 stars.
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