There is something to be said about a band who knows exactly how to communicate a feeling. On User Error, sewingneedle use the language of indie rock, post-punk, and post-hardcore to say a whole lot. It’s easy to get lost in the musical side of the presentation. The dissonance brings to mind the more mathy side of alternative rock. The rhythm section has a good amount of post-hardcore bombast. But, ultimately, there is a story underneath it all.
I always feel like Midwestern bands are bitter. Sometimes it’s just subtext, other times it’s just text. I might be reading my own Midwest bitterness into it sometimes, but I always hear it. On parts of User Error, I definitely feel a lot of it coming from sewingneedle. And I’m pretty sure it isn’t just my own bias.
For example, look at “Feel Good Music.”
Hire an agent, get some press
This week’s internet success
We are dangerous, salty, soused
Another quarter in the punk machineYou should have seen the beaming investors, flanked by adoring spouses
Wring dry who you can on your way to the middle.
Another example is the title track, “User Error.”
Bombing at the open mic to none
Sweating under hot Par Cans looking for the prompter
“Who’d you say inspires you?”
“The river Ganges, have you been?”
The record has a tone of dissatisfaction and indictment. There is a Control era Pedro The Lion type feel to it, musically and vocally. But with a 2018 vibe. Like, “Whirlybird” has a line about forgotten people’s eulogy being summarized as “less than, forward slash, number three. Sent from my iPhone.”
I know I’m doing a shit job putting this record over. I’m making it sound dire and not fun to listen to. That isn’t the case. The record is full of hooks. It’s got solid lyrics throughout. Basically, it’s a really engaging listen front to back. This should be right near the top of your list if you’re into mathy, post- type music. Also, y’know, I’ll always ride for a band from Illnois.
sewingneedle
Aerial Ballet Records
Already Dead Tapes & Records
Bandcamp
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Team Reasonable 