By the time of
Advertise Here's release,
EXEK had been a going concern for over a decade, with a string of acclaimed albums, EPs, and singles under their collective belt. However, the band's fourth album -- and first full-length to be issued by
John Dwyer's Castle Face label -- is a wonderful introduction to what makes them so special. While many post-punk-influenced groups of their generation are concerned with perfecting their takes on the style,
EXEK want to dismantle it. Their influences are a music snob's dream come true: the melancholy melodies of
154-era
Wire are driven by
Can's motoriks, stretched into rubber by
Lee "Scratch" Perry's dub, and cloaked in evocative
Eno atmospheres. While the individual elements of
EXEK's sound might be familiar, the moods they cast are entirely their own. This is experimental post-punk pop at its most surreal, with a psychedelic undercurrent that's unmistakable but not obvious (their favorite
Beatles song might be "Revolution 9"). Frontman Albert Wolski's background in scoring films comes through in the scope and detail of
EXEK's music, which often feels like a series of mildly chaotic journeys illustrated with moire patterns of samples and found sounds.
Advertise Here brings all of these aspects into slightly higher definition without losing any of the band's appealing amorphousness. In fact, the clearer sonics make it easier to appreciate the way all the different elements on a song like "Beyond Currency" gently float toward and away from each other, or the poignant, ambling pop of "(I'm After) Your Best Interest," than it was on
EXEK's previous releases. Everything on
Advertise Here is so diffuse that just about any direction the band takes feels natural, whether it's the hip-hop flirtations of "Unseasonable Warmth," the blobby electronics and strings of "ID'd," or "Parricide Is Painless," which is the closest the band comes to standard-issue post-punk (but still misses clichés by several light years).
EXEK are arguably at their best when they give their ideas plenty of space to unfold, and while there's nothing quite as epic as the 16-minute track "Baby Giant Squid" from their 2016 debut album
Biased Advice on
Advertise Here, the lengthy instrumental passages on "Sen Yen for 30 Min of Violin" still convey a sense of majesty and mystery. Subtly addictive,
Advertise Here is the work of a band committed to expanding the possibilities of post-punk and experimental pop, and anyone willing to have their brain rearranged by it will be richly rewarded. ~ Heather Phares