It has been, I’m sorry to say, a long time since we last covered The Resonance Association. Not for a lack of interest you understand (for they are fantastic), but rather a matter of timing, with several of their releases slipping through the net over the years. It is, therefore, high time that we caught up with the band, who are now on to their eighth album – Choose Euphoria – which proves to be an aptly titled collection of eight lengthy (and frequently astonishing) jams, totalling nearly an hour in length. A talented duo, comprising Dominic Hemy and Daniel Vincent, The Resonance Association have always been eclectic, but with Choose Eurphoria, there’s a certain vigour to the band’s sound that is undeniably engaging, while the range of influences has expanded from the electronic and post-rock soundscapes of their early releases, to take in psychedelic and indie elements, resulting in an album that blazes past far more quickly than its runtime would suggest.
The album opens with the surprisingly upbeat Force Majeure, a guitar-driven piece that harks back to the gritty indie/alt found lurking in Scotland during the latter half of the 90s (basically, anything on Chemikal Underground) – a feeling reinforced by the uber-distorted bassline that floats through the second half. It’s still The Resonance Association but evolved and, despite the tougher edge to the guitars, imbued with a psychedelic spaciness that is strangely addictive. It’s followed by the Depeche Mode-esque Invocation, which sees echoing guitars floating through space, caught between vintage drum samples and an insistent arpeggiated lead. A track that works its way into your conscience, only to subtly shift, elements of distortion eroding the surface and creating new shapes and textures as you watch. A sweet bassline sees the track out, with the only complaint being that it’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment that deserved a little longer in the spotlight. Choral voices lead the way into The State of Things, with its heartbeat drums and wobbly synth tones unexpectedly giving way to a triphop beat that nods to DJ Shadow’s timelessly wonderful Endtroducing. One of the best TRA tracks I’ve yet heard, it’s darker than the opening pieces, but beautifully layered and produced, making it an absolute joy to listen to. The first half concludes with the crunchy No Fear of Falling, which emerges from a simple piano motif to incorporate sanguine bass, spacey synth leads, and swathes of guitar that wash over the listener. It marks the end of an incredibly strong first half.
Opening the second half, the weird Some Kind sees samples weaving between the awkward synths, sounding rather like Orbital covering the famously oblique second disc of Nine Inch Nails’ The Fragile. One of the album’s artier tracks, it’s a tricky beast to pin down, but persevere and it establishes itself as an album highlight thanks to its truly unique identity. Rather more straightforward, the taut Trip Hazard locks the listener in with a driven beat and glacial synths, only for Elsewhere to lose itself in a progressive haze. The album concludes with the monumental Space Time Politics, which takes the retro-future soundtracks of Basil Poledouris as its starting point, throwing everything from the Theremin to crunchy guitars into the mix before it’s done. It’s the perfect conclusion to an album that neatly spans the divide between post-rock, electronica, and film scoring, and it marks the end of the most engaging The Resonance Association album to date.
A vivid, deeply imaginative ride across a musically diverse landscape, Choose Euphoria is an engaging experience that offers fantastic production, great musicianship and refreshingly unique ideas. While influences abound, they serve as reference points to a record that delights in defying expectations, and this bold, effusive outing is nothing short of exceptional. Choose Euphoria, choose The Resonance Association, for this is an immensely satisfying record. 9/10
