Battles Mirrored (Warp)

Battles combine John Stanier's (Helmet, Tomahawk) frenetic drumming with Ian Williams' (Don Caballero) signature finger-tapping guitar work and layer prog-metal keyboards along with everything from hip-hop and rap to free jazz to cartoonish vocal effects, creating what is probably going to be one of the most quietly influential albums of the year.

Though the band has been around for over four years, Mirrored is their first full-length. Previous EPs have indicated what kind of sound the band seemed most comfortable in (as comfortable as one can be in a spinning cube floating through space, trying to tap in to Trans Am or Tortoise's air space using a quite cheeky set of algorithms), and it was hard-hitting and seemingly live set inspired, rhythm-oriented post ... dance? rock? Whatever.

The band's ability to work outside genre classification is probably the most important offering Mirrored can boast long-term. There's not a doubt in this writer's mind that the trend (soon to be replacing this brutal and seemingly never-ending wave of banal baroque chamber pop) we'll soon be mired in is some mix of post-prog jazz, a rejection of genre so interesting, we hardly notice the influences until we struggle to describe what we're hearing. Bands like Mew, Xiu Xiu, The Berg Sans Nipple and Dungen all sort of lean this direction, and their success lies in the fact that you might never think to group them by sound. Sure, there's a certain way in which all of this relates back to progressive rock in the 70's, perhaps sugared with the pop and dance trends of the same era, never afraid to be equal parts drama and diversion. It's undoubtedly difficult without ever being inaccessible.

That being said, Mirrored is -- despite whatever Fragile references the author wishes to impose -- nothing if not modern. It effortlessly presents a suggested criteria and, simultaneously, a new paradigm for dance, pop and post-rock music: genres that we feel belong to us in a way that perhaps prog, jazz and classical orchestrations do not. Yet all of these elements are present, reinvented for a newer generation of listeners and artists. Where listeners find their electro beats tired, Battles provide a frenetic yet steady beat that begs you to move. Where we resign ourselves to boredom with traditional jazz (but aren't willing to lean quite towards the truly avant works of Cline or Cage), Battles combine difficult and dizzying time signatures and rhythm patterns. When what we now consider 'traditional' instrumental music falls flat, consisting of nothing but dramatic pauses and no drama, Battles constantly one-up themselves with vocal layers that defy melody and composition, yet fall perfectly in sync with loops, bleeps and (importantly) incredible live drumming that persists as the centerpiece of the album.

Don't let us mislead, though: Mirrored is not just another avant electronic album. Dave Konopka, Williams and Braxton play guitar true to form (Williams continuing to finger-tap, Braxton hurrying around the frets with precision that would please his dad. The single, "Atlas", begins with an intimidating tom thumps, a sort of I, Robot drone in the background, and just as cymbals crash, Tyondai Braxton's voice enters stage left and throws the entire show on its ass. What is remarkable is that the blatant ode to prog in the digital age isn't at all intrusive: the climax of the song (Battles by the books: piercing crash cymbals, a bass drum sound to kill for, and anti-melody guitars) works perfectly well against the introduction of Smurf-like robot devotionals ("Together, forever!").

The importance of Mirrored lies in its ability to work both as a collection of challenging compositions (try tapping along to the drums or playing along with the guitar part in "Ddiamondd") and as a step forward for multiple established genres that typically revolve around recognizable beats and not-so-shocking expectations. The highest precedent seems to be set for modern dance music played by live bands, of which there is plenty here in Austin, as Battles issue a challenge that goes something like "Try clapping this".

Battles MySpace
Battles @ Bleep
Battles @ Warp
Battles "Atlas" (YouTube)
Buy online @ Waterloo

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