“Apathy” is the latest release by Blue Ether, an outstanding band based in Chicago. Heavily promoted with singles such as “Hivemind,” “Banished,” “Knocked Down,” “Holding On,” “Blinding Lights,” “Knocked Down,” and “Cruel,” this marvelous debut full-length carries eight tracks that will appeal to anyone looking for a cleverly assembled and flawlessly performed music. Lyrically, the band explores various sentiments, moods, situations, and circumstances, so it’s a highly relatable material that will resonate with the broader auditorium. Soundwise, Blue Ether combines many different but complementary music genres to depict such rich and luxurious sounds. Perhaps alternative rock comes to mind first, but you’ll notice how some of the finest properties borrowed from garage rock, punk rock, hard rock, indie rock, and even some power pop found their way into this sonic equation. It’s an entire amalgam of genres that unquestionably affects the way these experienced musicians write, compose, arrange, and produce their songs. You’ll notice how Blue Ether continuously levitates alternative rock nostalgia between the late eighties and early nineties, but it also incorporates modern techniques and approaches to spice things up and elevate these tracks to new heights. They use these elements as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other details to uplift their music to an entirely new level while simultaneously remaining loyal to the primary sonic direction. These experimentations with many different but complementary music genres resulted in a collection of catchy, memorable, engaging songs that will appeal not only to all those long-standing alternative rock fans but anyone who appreciates expertly assembled and performed music.
From the onset, you’ll realize that these folks are not joking around with their sound. Each composition arrives with a perfect structure, garnered with many detailed segments, brilliant ideas, and marvelous orchestrations. Each vocal, sonic, and rhythmic maneuver has its place and purpose in this sonic equation, making “Apathy” such an incredible debut full-length album worth repeating over and over again. Blue Ether successfully merches calmness and energy, melody, and aggression in order to keep listeners engaged throughout the entire album. Whether you’re listening to almost bluesy rock anthem “Apathy,” punk-infused garage rock banger “Knocked Down,” catchy and harmonious power pop standout like “Blind,” acoustic folk-rock track like “One For The Road,” or you soak your listening apparatus in the alt-rock ambiance of “Hold On,” danceable indie-rock song like “Hivemind,” retro alt-rock anthem “All U Need,” and perfect closing track like “Cruel,” you’ll realize that Blue Ether thoroughly planned the entire album by taking into consideration even the tiniest details and nuances. The vocals steal the show here, as each composition arrives with a passionate, sincere, confident, emotive, and powerful performance. These vocal harmonies command attention and guide the listening apparatus from scratch to finish, decorating everything these experienced musicians intended to achieve with their music. The impressive vocal range seamlessly balances between low, mid, and high notes, emphasizing all the segments and instrumentations with such precision and finesse. In the meantime, the interplay between guitars shapes a perfect backdrop for all the vocals to shine upon. You’ll notice how tight, powerful, expertly, and tastefully assembled riffs and chord progressions resonate on one side while the other shines with many catchy, memorable, irresistible themes, melodies, harmonies, and other sonic delicacies. Blue Ether crafted these guitar works to satisfy even the pickiest music enthusiasts while those mentioned elements borrowed from many complementary genres ensure that the entire collection of songs sounds fresh, unique, and diverse throughout the entire album. Also, it’s nearly mindblowing how all these guitar works suit vocal maneuvers harmoniously, making “Apathy” such a pleasant listening experience. The entire material is decorated with some of the finest riffs and chord progressions you’ll hear on the modern alternative rock scene.
Of course, this epic sonic journey wouldn’t be complete without an equally impressive rhythm section. You’ll notice how all those intricate, audible, warm-sounding bass lines roar beneath guitar layers, offering more than necessary heaviness, clarity, and depth while binding those instrumentations together with rhythmic patterns. These low-ends are rich, dense, powerful, and luxurious, contributing more power to these songs. In the meantime, the excellent drumming performance based upon tastefully assembled, flawlessly performed,well-accentuated, energetic, groovy beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics keep the remainder of the band in line while dictating groove and tempo. These rhythmic structures are solely responsible for all the control and stability of these songs. Blue Ether thought about everything while writing, composing, arranging, recording, and producing their compositions, so if the guitars act as a perfect backdrop for all the vocals to shine upon, then the bass guitar and drums serve as a backbone, holding everything together. The best part about this material is how each composition offers even more hidden gems and sonic delicacies with each new listen. These skilled musicians poured heart and soul into their debut, and their effort resulted in a marvelous alternative rock album that will immediately resonate with a broader audience. With standout tracks like “Knocked Down,” “Blind,” “Hold On,” “Hivemind,” “All U Need,” and “Cruel,” Blue Ether proves that alternative rock music can still sound fresh, unique, exciting, and entertaining. Still, you should also pay attention to the remainder of the material, because those songs are equally good too. With marvelous vocal harmonies, catchy guitar works, intricate basslines, and energetic drumming, “Apathy” will quickly become one of those albums you’ll gladly return to whenever you crave some perfectly executed alternative rock music. You should immediately place Blue Ether’s debut full-length on your music radar. “Apathy” is available on all streaming platforms. Don’t miss it!
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