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by Todd Jordan Happy New Year is Oneida’s 8th album. Jeez, that’s quite a few albums they’ve got. Despite having figured in the New York art-rock scene for nearly 10 years, casting their inspirational (and frequently collaborative) shadow upon publicly celebrated acts like Liars, Ex Models, The Seconds and even Yeah Yeah Yeahs; somehow Oneida are often overlooked in conversation. This could possibly be because nobody seems to be 100% sure on exactly how to pronounce their band name (“O-nay-da”? “One-eye-dah”? “On-eee-daa?”…) Or else it could be because they are not on the surface as wildly experimental and just plain “wacky” as some of their more talked about counter-parts. On the surface, the songs on Happy New Year sound like a brilliantly creaky cross between early rapture-esque dance-rock, and Paul Giovanni’s haunting pagan themed film score for the original version of The Wicker Man. The first thing about the album that does seem unusual is in fact its very mature level of restraint. Bobby Matador and Hanoi Jane half whisper, half chant their vocals as though they were druids at Stonehenge gutting a lamb. Oneida have in their ranks a fellow by the name of Kid Millions, who might just be one of the most intense drummers playing today, as his guest work on Ex Models’ chaotic Chrome Panthers album shows. However, he is entirely absent from nearly a third of the tracks on offer here. Never the less, he has his moment to shine during the 7 minute long ‘Up With People’, which features a drum solo meaty enough to satisfy even the most egotistical rock star drummer. Despite the album’s sedateness, it has a distinct eerie menace and at times is just plain psychedelic (a word which I rarely employ as a compliment.) Superficially it might appear laid back, introspective, and lacking the overt quirkiness of the rest of New York’s A-list, but given enough attention, Happy New Year reveals itself to be a very brave, inventive, and above all, inspiring record, worthy of a much more prominent place within the CD racks of art-rockers everywhere. Spread the word.
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ONEIDA
- HAPPY NEW YEAR