Swedish trio MPB (a.k.a. Mamma Pappa Barn) was kind enough to recently surprise me with a few CDs seeing as I had written about some of the members' old project, Quagmire, many years ago. Recorded throughout 2022 - 2024 but released late last year, the band's latest effort, Flattened, is their first outing under the abbreviated banner of simply "MPB" as well as their first with song titles and lyrics in English.
Aspects of their visual aesthetic insinuate a possible indie rock type of sound, but their approach is actually far more in line with beautifully organic noise rock that has an unexpectedly heavy undercurrent of almost sludgy warmth and plenty of mathy quirks to the rhythms. There's also a great balance of tempos that sway effortlessly between relaxed and hectic. While "Victimologist" is a bit more straightforward and classic when it comes to staples of the genre, tunes like "Breaking Your Nose Breaking the News" possess a darker crawl; whereas "Mailbox and Trash Can Combinations" picks up the pace with a more angular, punk-like energy.
Physical copies of this particular release are available as a nice-looking CD-R in a slim jewel case (like old CD singles) with a double-sided insert that contains imagery and credits, straight from the band through Bandcamp—as are their two prior albums, both of which are equally as recommended. Their work does not appear to be on streaming, which is always fine by me, so... deal with it!
