This band of four persons from the Seattle area is doing stuff that very few of the other artists in the city are: This is pseudo-shoegazer electro-pop at its finest. Utilizing a stunning array of post-guitar rock instruments -- including drum loops, samples, keyboards, trumpet, and sequences --
Voyager One has really hit its stride on
Monster Zero. This is definitely an album which is meant to be listened to as a whole; no detaching a song here or there for criticism or praise. As an album that rises or falls based on the ability of the songs to stay cohesive and entertaining,
Monster Zero doesn't fail one bit. Rather, the dark tones, the sparse but powerfully calm British-esque vocals, and the ability for
Voyager One to go from soft to loud and back again in a non-emo/math rock manner makes everything on here click. Reading that last sentence, it may seem that
Voyager One's means to an end came by taking a page from the emo guide to success, but never, ever use that phrase to describe them. The elements of success are perhaps similar, but this act falls back on traditional British rock structure moreso than any American guide to rock. With that in mind, there is surely a stoner aspect to the music, not in the traditional pot realm as much as something more ambient, say
Pink Floyd-esque. However, if one is looking for musical comrades to
Voyager One, think
My Bloody Valentine,
Slowdive, or a shoegazer version of
Low. As a nice change of pace to all the emo, alternative, or rock out there, this comes highly recommended. ~ Kurt Morris