Skaters
Manhattan
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Rock
Skaters’ Manhattan chronicles life in New York City as it transports listeners to the city by mixing natural city-scape sounds with low-tone vocals and garage pop riffs. Manhattan’s sound, although varied and at times confusing, mirrors NYC’s chaotic nature.
Opener “One of Us” starts with a recording of NYC’s Q Line train announcement and then bursts into an orchestra of juxtaposing beats.
Manhattan continues to experiment with various sounds throughout the album while including natural city sounds, dynamic indie rock riffs and synth-like beats. “Band Breaker” alters that formula with a reggae-like beat backing the same low-tone vocals. Although it’s out of context with the rest of the album’s formulaic sound, it’s an enjoyable, breezy song.
“Nice Hat” is perhaps the most enjoyable track of the album as it breaks out of the constant formulaic sound. Abrupt breaks and background screaming add to the song’s anarchic sound.
The recording of natural sounds to the album is a nice addition, as it immerses listeners into the NYC lifestyle.
Although Manhattan is reminiscent of several different songs in its genre, it is only the band’s first album. It will be interesting to see where the band goes once it breaks out of this generic indie rock formula.
— Marcela Guimaraes
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