Surrounded by music all of her life, Singer/Songwriter Mackenzie Scott is one who has carved out a nice place for herself on the Indie Rock scene under the name Torres. A student of music who studied songwriting and English literature while in college, within a year of graduating she released her self-titled debut album in 2013. Something that earned traction, her 2015 follow up Sprinter inspired further interest; even finding her a place on tour with Garbage. Since that time Torres has continued to expand upon her Grunge Rock sound with exploration into other stylings as heard on 2017’s Three Futures, 2020’s Silver Tongue, as well as 2021’s impressive Thirstier.
Now building on the steady momentum she put into motion, 2024 finds Torres returning with the album What an enormous room. Set for release on January 26th through Merge, it is arguably her most experimental effort to date. The sixth album overall from Torres, it combines the dark, ambient qualities of her earlier works with the more Synthpop ones as heard most prevalent on Silver Tongue. A bit of a spacey collection that goes into abnormal corners of the musical spectrum, What an enormous room fits the artist trajectory of Torres like a glove.
Coming with ten tracks, it is modern, yet no less enticing thanks to an unconventional approach to the songwriting and presentation. That said, there are portions that go off in directions that may seem non-linear, but somehow work out well together. Freeing, Torres refrains from repeating herself throughout the album and always keeps you on your toes. With a lot to discuss, songs like “Happy man’s shoes,” along with the singles “I got the fear” and “Wake to flowers” are just some which mesmerize you with electronic tones and haunting vocals.
A few standouts amidst this opus, other conversation starters include “Artificial Limits” which is matched with an ominous tone, but also the more bright, upbeat, yet quirky “Jerk into joy.” As a whole, each song on What an enormous room marries clever lyric writing with inventive musician concepts. There are the Synthpop elements, but also the heavier electric guitars, thick bass guitar, and live drumming to create something broad reaching.
Certainly something that puts Torres in a unique class of modern singer-songwriters, What an enormous room is a bold pushing of the envelope. Not fitting into a box, this album further exemplifies that Torres can reach far out there without finding her efforts lost in translation. Furthermore, Scott’s talents are obvious; as she plays the guitars, bass, synths, organ, piano, and programmed drums on each of these songs (with contribution from album Co-producer Sarah Jaffe).
And if you are someone who perhaps does not know all too much about Torres, it would be safe to say if you are a fan of artists like Kate Bush, Metric, Meg Myers, or Siouxsie and the Banshees, you will feel rather comfortable here. An album not meant to be consumed while only partially paying attention, Cryptic Rock gives What an enormous room 4 out of 5 stars.
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