Album Review

FIDLAR – Dont Try

• 10th Sep 2012

Los Angeles based FIDLAR (apparently always in capitals) sound exactly like they are from Los Angeles. If it were possible to transform the internationally famous – or often infamous – L.A. atmosphere into a succinct musical style, the end product would arguably be ‘Don’t Try’. Comprising four tracks separated in substance but uniform in style, FIDLAR have developed a sound which represents the sun-soaked scantily clad stereotype one may associate with the city, and pelts it with a prominent edge of dirt, filth and underground noise-pop.

Dominated by fast-paced guitars and highly distorted vocals, ‘Don’t Try’ would presume itself to slot within the surf-punk revival movement, taking all the elements that form the genre; particularly the direct contradiction between the upbeat style and downbeat lyrics. On opener ‘No Waves’ the band deliver a style that imitates summer, while lacing it with lyrics such as: ‘I feel, I feel like shooting up. I feel, I feel like giving up’. For a genre that has based itself on contradiction, FIDLAR take the bleak to a new level.

As the EP continues the accompanying music begins to imitate the lyrics, culminating in the perfectly off-key ‘Black out Stout’ – the track taking influences from punk, surf-pop and soul. Closing track ‘Got No Money’ pushes the guitar to the forefront and removes the dominating distortion. As a result the song is infused with more punk attitude than the previous tracks, yet sits perfectly alongside them.

‘Don’t Try’ is messy, distorted and in-your-face, and it does not offer any condolences. With a production value that makes the record sound as crisp as can be while maintaining the garage-punk fundamentals, FIDLAR have demonstrated their importance in the noise-pop genre. If the Beach Boys had ever found themselves on the wrong side of the tracks socialising with traditionalist punks, ‘Don’t Try’ may have been the outcome. Travellers proclaim that L.A. has two sides and FIDLAR certainly exemplify both.