I checked this out because I saw someone compare it to Duster. OK. I think we’ve been listening to different Duster records. Anyway. Peaer (I am finding that impossible to type), play some discordant, off-beat indie rock, some might say math rock, some might say slowcore. Everything just feels a little off (as befits a band naming themselves after a fruit but spelling it deliberately wrong) but in a way that I can eventually get my head around once I figured out where they were going with it. It’s a wonky thing, swaying slowly from side to side like a ship with a faulty rudder and a mildly tipsy captain over-correcting things but given that this is a Panamax vessel this isn’t going so well. Even the vocals, drawled out casually and with little interest in carrying a tune for much of the record, make me feel a tiny bit seasick. But there are fine moments of smart, intricate melody and tracks such as “Cliff Song” remind me of the more peculiar songs on the Wrens opus, ‘Secaucus’. Despite the unusual patterns and movements Peaer rarely get bogged down in technical tedium and “look at me mum!” nonsense that tends to plague math rock, things are entirely more listenable than that.
I might have been a little bit harsh on that guy comparing them to Duster as “Drunk” certainly has elements coming to the fore, particularly in it’s slow and loping, cocodamol fuzzed opening. But later on this song sounds like a Weezer 45 being played on 33. And just a few moments later on “Sick” they sound like a Weezer 45 being played on 45. It’s very nice but sticks out like a sore thumb on this record. All over the place, I tell you. Anyway Duster is one of the greatest bands ever so it’s not a comparison I am likely to throw around, it’s like saying a band sounds like Christie Front Drive, it’s impossible. That shit can never be recreated.
Anyway, enough of that. This is a worthwhile listen if you are partial to a little oddness in your indie rock, and are prepared for songs to not take the obvious path, requiring you to do a little work to keep up with them.