Atlas Sound: Parallax Album Review

Bradford Cox is at it again with his new solo album Parallax.  If you're not familiar with his work, Bradford Cox has released five albums with his band, Deerhunter, and now Parallax is his third solo album released under the name Atlas Sound.  His work with Atlas Sound tends to be a bit softer and less experimental in nature compared to some of his work with Deerhunter and this is definitely the case on Parallax.  This album progresses smoothly like a dream sequence with great pop melodies built over top ambient sound and music.

The album starts off with the song entitled The Shakes which is a straight forward pop tune with simplistic drums using catchy fills.  It builds slowly and is short and sweet, but it opens up the album very well setting the tone for a more dreamy style pop that seems both upbeat and downbeat at the same time.  The second song, Amplifiers sounds a bit more irregular in nature with definite softer and dreamier sounds than the preceding track.  The bass goes back and forth and is quite repetitive, but in a good way as it's used over top the ambient synth-pop sounds.  The drums are still simplistic, but they have great use of discrete hi-hat and cymbal work.  The song ends with a pleasing falsetto and synthesized effects slowing to a halt.  Te Amo is one of my favourites off of Parallax with a looped piano line switching from left to right creating that feeling of a dream sequence all too perfectly.  Between the ambient sounds, vocals, soft drums and piano, this song almost has a Caribbean feeling to it.  The title track, Parallax comes next which has heavy use of effects creating the ambient synth-based pop that is so prevalent on this album.

te amo by atlas sound

Modern Aquatic Nightsongs really describes itself as I can imagine myself being on a beach at night in the Caribbean with this song softly playing in the background.  The drums and percussion support the feel with layered guitars and effects supporting Cox's soft voice throughout.  Mona Lisa is one of the most straight-forward pop songs on the album with drums similar to The Shakes and an acoustic guitar sound with background harmonica driving the song forward.  For someone who hasn't heard Bradford Cox's work with either Deerhunter or Atlas Sound, Mona Lisa would be a great intro track.  In Praying Man, Cox's voice is a bit more distorted and experimental on top of acoustic guitar layered behind catchy electric progressions and late in the song, an ambient harmonica line.  Doldrums is next which is possibly the softest song on the album. It's a perfect song for falling asleep to or for entering a state of deep relaxation.  It seems like a modern synth-pop lullaby in many ways.

My Angel Is Broken is another semi-upbeat pop song with straight-forward acoustic guitar, bass and drums giving reference to an old style of pop that one could find in the 60s.  Terra Incognita reverts back to a softer ballad style progression with minimal use of drums or percussion.  Another perfect song for deep relaxation and imagining yourself by the water on a beautiful summer night.  Flagstaff is the second last song on the album and starts off softly with guitar and vocals as Bradford Cox exploits the best parts of his vocal range.  The entire second half of the song is a combination of layered effects and synth as the track slowly comes to a close.  The final song on the album, Lightsworks, definitely ends on a high-upbeat note.  It starts off with a progression of stand-alone drums before the oldschool pop style guitars and bass comes in with Cox singing in a bit of a lower register.  This song has great use of backup vocals adding to the overall ambient feel which we experience in this album.  With more use of harmonica and guitar effects, this song embodies the more upbeat qualities that Parallax has offered throughout.  The effects that close the song off almost feel similar to how you would expect Cox to finish off a concert.

Overall I would give this album an 8.5 out of 10.  I would consider this my favourite Atlas Sound album to date as it progresses smoothly and is extremely easy to listen to.  As Bradford Cox continues to develop his skills as a musician, singer, songwriter and editor, it will be interesting to see which direction his music will take as his solo effort in Atlas Sound, as well as with his band, Deerhunter.  Parallax isn't the kind of album you would play at a party, and it's not the type of album you would use to quickly raise your energy, but if you have the time alone to relax and reflect, this is the perfect album to listen to.  Parallax perfectly embodies the surreal with both the lyrics and instrumentation.  It truly does feel like a smooth dream sequence appealing to all of the senses with every song fitting perfectly and flowing together to create a masterpiece.