New Music – Lay Me Down Easy

Sometimes the finest elements of shoegaze aren’t what the record packs in, but instead what the record lacks, and with No Swoon’s newest display, Take Your Time is the recovery album that personally opens a floodgate of originally and intrigue.

Mentally speaking, low points throughout life take over, but through Take Your Time, No Swoon is this guardian angel that instead of becoming a daunting endeavor, shows some of the glory that life can protrude. The duo led by Tasha Abbott and Zack Nestel-Patt are a formidable force without even raising a fist.

Instead, the hands of prominence fall upward with the title track being the opening, “Take Your Time.” Beautiful but could be mistaken for somber introductions, Abbott on vocalization gives vitality to a seemingly deranged and cascading track. The foundations of “Take Your Time” let the listener down easy, not into the bay of spikes or pigs that could overpower. Instead, the ethereal approach vocally is a fantastic addition to the piece and makes for a slow burn with Take Your Time rather than a mad dash through the doors.

The following “Again” is a bit of a jolt to the system compared to “Take Your Time,” making for No Swoon to become this monster that has human features through instrumentation. Never quite a conquering force, No Swoon is the perfect band for windows drenched in light or the familiar, exciting feeling of an old friend.

Abbott and Nestel-Patt recruit Jonathan Smith on the percussion as well as engineering for the record and feature Jake Aron on guitars, keys, and production for several of the tracks on Take Your Time. The biggest surprise comes from the mastering done by Joe LaPorta who often handles producer and hip-hop heavyweight The Alchemist which grants some overall engagement between the genres.

Tracks like “Otherside” have some upbeat mantra to them and begin to push this level of danceability to the production with these simple but infectious drums. The build-up isn’t entirely based on tension but is instead boosted to new heights with Abbott’s vocals over the already dreamy atmosphere.

Over the 10 tracks and 36 minutes spent with No Swoon on Take Your Time, memories of “Nothing” start to stick out with the advantageous way of stacking layers on top of each other to eventually bury one another. It begins with vocals and a hi-hat click only, then as the synth clicks get added to coincide with the snare and bass, the mix begins to spread out and feel grace to the compound.

fundamentally, Take Your Time is easy to approach but from a glance seems simple enough. Only until getting closer and looking more in-depth at each component here does No Swoon win over the heart through sheer prowess on production and gleam on performance.

Listen To Take Your Time Here!!! – BandCamp/Spotify/iTunes