Building on the sound they set forth on the
Ladders
EP,
TRAAMS
' first full-length,
Grin
, delivers a hypnotic mix of indie, punk, and Krautrock that encompasses influences like
Wire
and
Television
as well as contemporaries like
Parquet Courts
Beak>
. There's an almost elemental feel to the trio's songs, and at their best, they're artfully simple. On "Swimming Pool," the bludgeoning rhythm section hits home the band's post-punk influences while
Stuart Hopkins
' voice embodies the music's extremes in his muffled monotone and wild yelps. The tension between
' explosive and droning sides makes
intriguing, especially when the band juxtaposes brief, shouty vignettes such as the scrappy "Fibbist" and "Flowers" -- where
Hopkins
wails "I don't even know your number/And you don't even know my name" with the desperation of a thousand craigslist Missed Connections -- with lankier tracks like the aptly named "Loose" and "Klaus," which brings all the elements of
' music together in a dense seven-minute groove. However, there's a fine line between brilliant and boring when it comes to simple, driving songs like these. At times the band gets a little too basic, as on the grungy "Demons," and at others, they meander; "Head Roll"'s punchy momentum is squandered on an unnecessarily lengthy coda. Still,
show a lot of promise, especially when they get weird. They add a funky angle to "Reds" that elevates it beyond a mere outburst, while "Sleep" has an unhinged intensity that they'd do well to investigate further. Even if
aren't quite firing on all cylinders on
, the album shows they've got the potential to expand on any of the directions they introduce here. ~ Heather Phares