E-L-R - Vexier

Angry Metal Guy

“Doom” plus “shoegaze” equals “doomshoe.” Wait, sorry–with Vexier, Switzerland’s E-L-R releases their second platter of so-called doomgaze. The sound, as you might guess from the tag, combines echoing, reverb-soaked vocals with riffs that repeat to the point of near-hypnosis. The heavier elements are closer to post-metal than they are to doom, with a psych-rock vibe that often recalls a late-era Kylesa.¹ The challenge in assessing the shoegaze elements, which I undertake on penalty of being flung back into the Skull Pit, is to get the job done without leaning on genre cliches like “dreamy,” “ethereal,” “My Bloody,” or “Valentine.” Should be a cinch! Let’s close our eyes and trust-fall right back into this mound of pillowy goodness.

Vexier presents the listener with five gossamer compositions that make themselves at home over forty-six minutes. The songs tend to be introduced by lengthy heads and then sent off with equally sprawling tail sections. In between, in the segments otherwise known as “music,” the band alternates between heavy riffing and sections of ethere–sorry, I meant to say diaphanous–singing. E-L-R is a trio, with singer and guitarist S.M. serving as the main ingredient in this confection. The arrangements are simple throughout: S.M.’s singing and riffs, typically strummed in basic patterns, yank the rhythm section along with nary a lead guitar in sight. It’s enthralling in spots, with the elegant cover art capturing the vibe of the record at its best. Unfortunately, a lack of dynamism in the songwriting often takes this sonic bath from warm to a less-pleasing room temperature.

It’s a fine line between mesmerizing and tedious. Shoegaze titans like My Bloody–wait, my bad we’re not discussing them. Ahem: certain genre titans manage to stay on the right side of that line, but too often E-L-R find themselves on the boring side of things. It’s a function of simplicity and repetition. These songs, with their strummed guitar riffs, occasionally feel like they could be played by anyone willing to put in a few months’ practice. Plenty of bands have ridden three chords to glory, but Vexier throws the basic nature of the songwriting in the listener’s face by repeating the riffs until fatigue sets in. By the album’s middle section, the effect is so pronounced that you’d be forgiven for forgetting whether you’re listening to “Three Winds,” “Seeds,” or single “Fleurs of Decay.”

It’s a shame because the album excels where it introduces variety. Bookends “Opiate the Sun” and “Floret” are the strongest tracks, with “Floret” benefitting from the contrast between S.M.’s vocals and a male guest singer. The song is a marvel of tension and release, my favorite piece on the album by a good bit. “Three Winds” kicks off with a tremolo-picked, black metal-inflected riff. It’s a surprising and promising moment that quickly transmutes into something more familiar. These passages contain hints of a better, more dynamic platter that builds something interesting out from the dreamy² passages that are E-L-R‘s stock-in-trade. If they’re going to pursue that version of themselves, the band would do well to find a different approach to production. The current one shoves S.M.’s guitars to the front of the mix, which highlights rather than hides their occasional weakness.

I enjoyed chunks of Vexier, but things get humdrum when you try to consume the album as a whole. There are quality ingredients here, it just feels like there aren’t enough of them yet. A new wrinkle added to the arrangements, more variety in the songwriting… E-L-R needs something to distinguish their music from its peers in the Promo Sump. Until they can find that missing element, this is strictly single-serving stuff.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s
Label: Prophecy Productions
Website: facebook.com/elrhaze | e-l-r.bandcamp.com/album/vexier
Releases Worldwide: March 11, 2022

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