Braver - Torpor - LP

Braver - Torpor - LP on Do What Records.

Tracklist:

    1.    Frequent Flyer 02:03
    2.    Busted Ass Fish Str8 Hooked through the Eyeball 01:55         
    3.    Torpor 01:37         
    4.    Miles to Sleep 02:18         
    5.    Little Girl Soldier 02:00         
    6.    Les Enfant Terribles 02:54         
    7.    Metal Roads 01:43         
    8.    Novice P 01:47         
    9.    Object Permanence 03:38

Razorcake Review:

I can’t tell you how refreshing it is to get a record from a band you’ve never listened to and then instantly love it. Torpor opens up with antics that make me think of Dillinger Four as they switch from goofing about to a strong and raucous guitar riff. It’s the vocals that grab me. Somehow they’re a mix of Josh Caterer (Smoking Popes) and Dan Lord (Pain), with the cadence of Emily Whitehurst (Tsunami Bomb). The singing carries over the obvious measure breaks and time signature changes in a way that’s not jarring at all. They undulate along with the jagged melodic guitar until it’s time to run off on their own. Braver’s rhythm section pummels—especially the drums. They’re really making a stark dichotomy between the beautiful crooning and the heavy fills. At the beginning of “Little Girl Soldier” there’s this gorgeous refrain that the guitar does just a few times throughout the song and it’s intoxicating. Where I think this record falls short is in the samples and non musical bits that they sprinkle throughout. It only happens three times, but I feel that it detracts from Torpor’s beauty. “Les Enfants Terribles” is the slow burn of the record and it is just as intelligent, emotional, and pretty as the fast songs. I played this three times in a row and I may just flip it over once more. “Swim through debris / Drown, rinse, repeat.” –Kayla Greet (Do What?)