Reptilians from Andromeda — Sonic Rabbit Hole
★★★☆☆
Reptilians from Andromeda are a DIY, post-punk band from Istanbul, Turkey that, with the release of their five-song album, Sonic Rabbit Hole, show that they’re capable of writing decent, energetic tunes with garage-band production that are, for the most part, enjoyable but do not radically push the envelope of the genre. Things to like about Sonic Rabbit Hole are its rock-edge on the tracks “Psychic Girl,” “Jungle,” and “Like the River to the Sea.” However, there is a kind of unoriginality or annoyingness which accompanies the chanted vocal portions of “We Are Who We Are,” “Wicky Wacky Witches,” and “Like the River to the Sea.” Also, the production here sounds much more like a set of demos than a finished product ready for public consumption. Still, the band shows potential for releasing some enjoyable songs in the future, and it will be interesting to see what they do next.
1. “Psychic Girl”
“Psychic Girl” opens with a surf-music vibe before chugging into its steady beat that carries the rest of the song. Vocals are partially layered behind a kind of reverb and Aybike Çelik Özbey delivers some nice, snarkily repeated vocals that give the song attitude. “Psychic Girl” is just what it needs to be as the opener intending to capture a listener’s interest.
2. “Jungle”
“Jungle” provides Sonic Rabbit Hole with a much-needed strangeness. Like “Psychic Girl,” it opens with a riff and beat that leads into the rest of the song, but “Jungle” differs from “Psychic Girl” in that about halfway through, jungle-animal sound-effects are included, which add a fascinating eccentricity to the track. Although the inclusion of such sound effects can be overdone or kind of dumb, the build-up to their inclusion works decently for the song.
3. “We Are Who We Are”
“We Are Who We Are” follows the same musical structure as the last two tracks, except the vocals of Aybike Çelik Özbey are much more dissonant — at times, almost unbearably so. In addition, the song relies on the annoying repetition of the line, “We are who we are,” which comes off as an uncreative punk lyric. Still, there is decent percussion at the beginning and throughout of “We Are Who We Are” that add a feeling of structured chaos to the otherwise disappointing track.
4. “Wicky Wacky Witches”
“Wicky Wacky Witches” is an improvement from “We Are Who We Are,” but it faces the same problems with its vocals and lyrics. The repeated lines in this track are, instead, the eponymous, “Wicky wacky witches,” followed by a high-pitched sigh that, by the end of the song, becomes aggravating to listen to. The unpolished, garage-band production is most evident here, and it stands in stark contrast to the much-more-enjoyable opener, “Psychic Girl.”
5. “Like To The River To The Sea”
“Like To The River To The Sea” follows in the same musical footsteps as the first four tracks, but it is neither as enjoyable as “Psychic Girl” nor as unlikable as “We Are Who We Are.” It is a pretty standard-sounding track, except for the annoying chanting at its end which mars an otherwise decent song.
Favorite tracks: “Psychic Girl,” “Jungle”
Least favorite tracks: “We Are Who We Are,” “Wicky Wacky Witches”
Sorry if you don’t agree. Please keep your discourse civil in the comments.
Reptilians from Andromeda are on Bandcamp here.
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