Review: Night and Blur - The Bilinda Butchers

 

By Zach Zollo


My Bloody Valentine, the definitive shoegaze act, left an incalculable impact on indie rock with their brand of distorted dream pop and studio trickery. Their sound and direction may be indebted to mastermind Kevin Shields, but vocalist/guitarist Bilinda Butcher was equally as important in defining how vocals in the genre would be sung. But beyond her voice and guitar work, she would prove influential in an entirely different aspect: her name.


The Bilinda Butchers are a New York-via-San Francisco dream pop band that fuse an eclectic mix of electronics into their sound. Perhaps best known for their 2011 EP regrets, love, guilt, dreams — a release one could consider an underground classic — their latest record, Night and Blur, is their first new material in five years. While not a grand reinvention or particularly innovative in their approach to their established style, Night and Blur is commendable for its pleasant accessibility, tonal consistency, and shift in lyrical focus.


Opening with the title track, the band establishes the record’s atmosphere with ease: cavernous guitars meld with swirling synths, bringing the listener back to the era of Primal Scream’s prime and early 90’s UK baggy. Michal Kepsky’s vocals, full of longing but without investment, work effectively in the mix. For a song that’s vibe-centric, it offers just enough kineticism to make for an engaging listen, a balance that is mostly accomplished throughout the record. The album never exceeds this energy level throughout, save for “Bishop Weed,” an ill-advised dubstep interlude that could have been cut from the tracklist. 


The electronic genres from which the band draws influence — house, drum and bass, even a little UK garage — make for effective seasonings within the songs. “Low” maintains a subtle, bubbling rhythm under Kepsky’s ruminations of a relationship, while “Lights Out” builds into a crescendo with a blissful release of the song’s central guitar line. “Rie,” perhaps the strongest song on the record, begins as a Souvlaki B-Side, transitioning into what the band does best: making dream pop a gentle dance party to attend with your friends. 


Kepsky stated that the lyrics of this album are not about friendship or good times, but turmoil and self destruction. This is most frequently felt through the lens of lovesickness, such as on “Is It Real,” where he questions his reality after loss: “Is it sad to never love again?/ Is it real when everything is pretend?” The framing of his emotions through questions is a device he uses on almost every track here, whether it be “Matter2” (“are you with him?”) or album closer “Last Train” (“does it hurt to be alone?”). Kepsky may not be the most literate of lyricists, but he is certainly deft at channeling the sadder side of his emotions into digestible refrains that compliment his soothing style of singing. Whether or not they’re trite may depend on who’s listener, but for this writer, they lie more towards serviceability. 


For the first new material from the band in half a decade, Night and Blur successfully picks up from where they last left out, delivering a dish that’s appetizing albeit average. Think of it like an entree of risotto: dependable, filling, spiced with a mix you wouldn’t have thought of, but it makes all the sense in the world. Yet, it’s still risotto; how much can you really change it up?


BOPS: "Night and Blur," "Lights Out," "Rie," "Last Train"

DUDS: "Bishop Weed"

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