Post-punk heavyweights Title Fight head to a new corner of the ring, pulling out of the unexpected.
Echoey tracks layered in sonic distortion, dream-like reverb and droning whirrs make up most of the Pennsylvania-grown foursome’s third album “Hyperview,” which is to be released on Tuesday.
Title Fight’s sophomore album, “Floral Green,” branded a punk-rock label into the band, which started with their first release, “Shed.” Melodic time signatures with post-hardcore influences were cemented into their sound through tracks like “Secret Society” and “Numb, But I Still Feel It.”
The band’s initial dabble into shoegaze was blatantly apparent in “Like a ritual” and in “Lefty,” which is arguably one of the best works of their career.
After a two-year wait, it seems as if fans of their abrasive, guitar-driven brand are being sucker-punched into a complete turnover to the stark side.
Title Fight’s sound has shifted immensely, and it’s still up for discussion whether it’s for better or for worse.
Slow tempos and passive riffs lead into the first track “Murder Your Memory.”
“Murder your memory / let it suffocate / reduce,” vocalist and bassist Ned Russin punch-drunkenly slurs with about as much vim as one has after downing a bottle of Nyquil. “Circle back to sunny days / like a bird of prey / subdue.”
It isn’t until halfway through the album in the playful, instrumentally upbeat track “Rose of Sharon” that the mic swings full-time to vocalist and guitarist Jamie Rhoden, rotating from an inset library voice to the vindictive roar with which fans are accustomed to sympathizing.
Title Fight’s struggle to get off the ropes lies behind establishing an individual tone from their predecessors.
Within three tracks, the apparent identity crisis floats to the surface. Russin’s predominant, mellow timbre is layered over Rhoden’s signature shout, leaving the two fighting for the melody in “Hypernight.”
The instrumentals tune in and out of the droning sonic-soaked verses and choruses highlighting the band’s more traditional, in-sync riffs.
Although effects like this have worked in the past for bands such as Dinosaur Jr., the virtuosity isn’t here to pull off anything exceptionally great.
The whirring melancholia in “Dizzy” resonate with the template already set forth by bands like Oasis, Moose, Slowdive and the Stone Roses.
By the time the final track “New Vision” plays, listeners still may not be sure whether this is Title Fight or Jesus and Mary Chain.
It will be interesting to observe how well the lax tracks translate into their live shows.
Will “Hyperview” clear from their shows the floral green sea of raging, high-energy breakers in plaid and Converse, only to swell into a calm wading pool of complacent swayers in another LA-based attempt in reviving the Smiths?
Title Fight’s latest release delivers a surprising left-hook, but it’s by no means a haymaker.
Rating: 3/5 stars