Sheen Marina describe themselves as a ‘surf-noise’ band. However, I think that’s doing their music a disfavour, as it cannot be completely covered by this umbrella term. In their upcoming album, Travel Lightly, there are also strong flavours of math rock and avant-prog, which can hardly be foreseen with the ‘surf noise’ label. This thirty-minute album consists of nine tracks with varying degrees of interbreeding with the other aforementioned genres, all over a pretty clear, reverb-drenched surf rock basis. ‘WYSC’, for example, is almost a straight-up math rock song, with complex rhythms and odd time signatures, while ‘Nose Ring Boring’ is highly reminiscent of eclectic prog, with its contrapuntal melodies and strange harmonic choices. Other songs, like ‘Fever Dreams’, are more straightforward surf rock tunes, but still bearing the band’s eccentric personality. Travel Lightly is a unique album that provides a fun and interesting listening experience. Do not miss!
A promotional copy of the album was provided for this review.
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