With
Praise a Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds)
,
Yves Tumor
continues their tradition of never doing exactly the same thing twice. Their third release for
Warp
channels the careening energy of
Heaven to a Tortured Mind
into concise -- but not confined -- songs that examine sensuality and spirituality and confidently subvert pop, rock, noise, electronic, and R&B. Just how impatient
Tumor
's creativity is makes itself apparent on "God Is a Circle," which fashions screams and gasps into a heaving rhythm topped by clawing synths and a grungy, descending bass. As
explores self-doubt, the song tears itself apart, skewing their music's psychedelic leanings into a hallucinatory hall of mirrors. Here and throughout the album, they use abrasive and lush textures as vivid emblems of their searching. The surging riffs on "Meteora Blues" (which build on the
Deftones
-like intensity of
The Asymptotical World
EP) further brand the imagery of "lips just like red flower petals" into listeners' minds, while "Parody"'s choral vocals and heroic guitar solo simultaneously elevate and deflate the artificiality of celebrity that
challenges ("What makes you so important? Can you spell it out for us?"). However,
's flair for melody and hooks is just as important to the album's success as their fearless questioning. Frequently, they make it seem easy to explore faith and love within tightly written songs that don't sacrifice complexity for immediacy. With its cheerleader chants and profound thoughts on belief, "Operator"'s post-punk-pop-hop rivals
OutKast
's "Hey Ya!" as an earworm of a song with deeper layers waiting to be unpeeled. Similarly, standouts like the gospel-tinged "In Spite of War" and rippling "Echolalia" manage to distill
's music down to its catchiest incarnation while holding on to its essential mystery. Though the poppy compactness of these songs gives
Praise a Lord
a more consistent flow than
revisits that record's maximalism at key points with striking results. "I love the color blue because it's in the sky and that's where God is," a child says on "Heaven Surrounds Us Like a Hood" while tumultuous noise, guitar, and
's quicksilver harmonies evoke a battle between demons and angels; on "Ebony Eye," majestic strings and brass usher the album to its triumphant close. At once challenging and inviting,
is another dazzling work from a creative whirlwind.
may never find the answers they're seeking, but hearing their search is exhilarating and inspiring in its own right. ~ Heather Phares