Albums

Lackthereof - Your Anchor

Matt Haigh 01/08/2008

Rating: 2/5

Lackthereof is the bedroom side project of Danny Seim, supposedly better known for his work with Menomena drummer. Your Anchor is Seim's ninth album, and presents a rather downbeat affair, a wall of sound comprising deep, ominous bass, jangly guitars and raw drumbeats. Complimenting proceedings is Danny's voice, an instrument that manages to sound both depressingly vacant and husky-warm at the same time. The album doesn't get off to the best of starts, as the first two songs sound virtually identical, and unimpressive to boot. Luckily, things do pick up somewhat.

Doomed Elephants recalls early Beck (Broken Train in particular), while songs such as Ask Permission and Vacant Stare manage to be atmospheric and emotive, always threatening but luckily never actually sliding into American-Indie-sounding schmaltz. Seim's sound is confident and assured, and here he presents an immediate, cohesive whole that should impress, if the subdued aesthetic doesn't have you slitting your wrists first.