RECORD REVIEW: The Pink Frosts, Unremarkable Product (2023)

RECORD REVIEW: The Pink Frosts, Unremarkable Product (2023)

 

do you ever feel like you’ve forgotten to do something? 


the deadlines for this blog are quite frankly ridiculous considering no one reads it and i do it for zero money. original content, every single week. i’ve been busy, ok? and my scheduling got kind of fucked up because some people haven’t gotten back to me when i needed them to. i wanted to have a new interview for you all, but the ball got dropped last minute so i’m forced, for the first time to draw from my emergency stock of older releases to retrospectively review. 


ironically, the band du jour, The Pink Frosts, have a new record out on friday, but no one gives me advanced copies of stuff, so i’m covering their last release, a three track EP from november last year. if i was smart, i’d just push my schedule back to friday and review the new thing then, but i’m doing this here and now, for you, dear reader. it’s poor timing on my part, but when is that ever your own fault?


listening to previous releases, you can tell that The Pink Frosts have been mining post-punk a lot more faithfully then any of the other bands i’ve written about, and for a longer time. it’s a sign of true dedication to the genre when you start turning to the lower profile artists in a genre to find your sound. while most wellington bands are desperate to sound like Joy Division or Gang of Four, inarguably brilliant bands, yes, but everyone’s heard them before, and no one who’s “influenced” by them sounds anywhere close to them, because you all refuse to actually listen to the b-sides that don’t make it to tiktok. The Pink Frosts are closer to acts like The Sound or the Virgin Prunes. those bands that never got the music critic bigtime, despite being as good as the big acts. it just shows actual commitment to the genre. put it this way, it’s refreshing to see a band that actually does their homework.


this release, the self effacing-ly titled Unremarkable Product marks a change of direction however. for the first time, we have what could be called pop hooks and a more palatable indie-rock sound. there’s still a post punk edge but we’re far removed from the Nick Cave-esq swamp of early singles like Mr Big or White Picket Fences. track 2; A Smile Away, sounds like some kind of Ian Curtis meets Pavement. i’m hearing elements of all the contemporary wellington student bands in here. which is odd for a band who’s been here for longer then they have, but i do have to give them credit for keeping up with the times.


recording quality wise, it’s a little hit and miss. it’s all been recorded very live and dry, which i like, but i think it could have used a few extra takes here and there, plus, isn’t this music supposed to be cavernous and dub-heavy? this won’t affect your initial listening experience but it does start to twig for listeners on repeat listens, still, the fact that i’ve listened to it enough on my own times to start noticing little flaws in the production should be taken as a cautious endorsement of the material on display.


i like the driving urgency of opener Yarbles and the strange shoegaze lilt of closing title track. with a bigger studio budget and some extra rehearsal time, i could see this being one of those modern classics i like to talk about, but as it is, it’s not outwardly offensive, the song craft on display is good, and the band is inventive enough to make checking out the new release when it drops on friday. as for this release, if you liked bands like Ringlets and you want more of that sound, you’ll like this, if that sound leaves you cold, i’m not sure this is release will be the one that’ll change your mind. 


final score: ****/5

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