ice baths: s/t

Self-titled debut from Ice Baths. London-based Ice Baths take influence from cult heroes such as Swell Maps, Television Personalities, Devo, US Maple -- all restless energy and angled aggression. Lyrically there is a bleakness and darkness, though the band prefer the listener to reach their own conclusions as to lyrical themes. "They centre on feelings or imagery that can be dreary, dark, difficult and abstract. We deliberately pass the buck to the listener to pick out certain moods or feelings," explains the band, which consists of Alex Ives, Thomas Cleall, Ed Shellard, and Jack Davis. The production process was not simple nor was it smooth. The band had a very clear idea of how they wanted the record to sound and that included a long, pain-staking period where ideas were scrapped and reworked. "It was an absolute challenge, we were very picky about how to get the sound we wanted. It led us to mixing the record ourselves. We wanted the record unpolished and raw, hissy, trebly, bitty and a bit uncouth," says Alex. To achieve the desired effect, the album was recorded on a selection of different Tascam tape machines -- a move to retain the grittiness of early demos as well as the spike their live shows are known for. Ice Baths have been on the London circuit for a short while now, they're a notoriously tight live band but now they are ready to take the next step. 140 gram vinyl; Includes two art prints, lyric sheet, and download code. Recommended to fans of Swell Maps, Wire, Devo, Women, Faux Fur, Unblonde, Cold Pumas, Viet Cong, Pavement.