It Sound – Hard Pop For Blue Trees Album Review

The debut album from It Sound, Hard Pop For Blue Trees, is a rather visceral experience upon first listen, throwing the listener into a gauntlet of free-form guitar riffs and echoing vocals. It’s not that It Sound’s music is difficult to listen to — and as you work your way through the album it becomes rather rewarding — but the slightly offbeat rhythms make for a challenge upon first gaze. On tracks like “Oh, Machinery,” It Sound’s talents shine, revealing guitar-driven bop that finds a home somewhere between Fujiya & Miyagi and Atlas Sound. Although It Sound could certainly benefit from a true backing band, as his keyboard drums and tambourine work wear thin by the end of the album, Hard Pop For Blue Trees almost benefits from its fuzzed-out nature. If there’s one thing to be said about Hard Pop For Blue Trees, it’s that it is terrifically consistent, and I don’t mean that in a backhanded manner. From “Sometimes The Wind Will Win” to “Make Sure To Rock,” the album maintains that great balance of guitar-wielding madness and droning vocals, creating an album that shows promise, while also leaving plenty to improve on for a sophomore album.

www.itsound.us // complete album stream