BRMC is one of the few rock bands that consistently keeps me from abandoning current rock music. While most other stuff that I hear has all been sounding about the same to me over the past three or four years, they can consistently write interesting, creative music that reminds me of what I really like about rock'n'roll.

So, when I heard that they had released a new, digital-only record, I immediately forked over the $6 they asked for it. What I got surprised the hell out of me.

The Effects of 333 wildly different from everything else that BRMC has released. They are a band that had been releasing rock that could typically be considered shoegaze, psychedelic, or blues/roots since 2001. It came as a surprise that two or three songs of the ten tracks on the record have sounds that are immediately identifiable as guitar. As the record is mostly ambient, there's a lack of consistent rhythm or melody in most songs and I don't think that there are any original vocals (the last track includes a lot of samples, though).

While I was very surprised by this complete change from anything they've done before, I think that I really like this one. After letting it sink in, I just can't stop listening to it all the way through. It feels like music that tells the story of whatever you're seeing at the time. It plays like a soundtrack. There is also some pretty interesting spacializing that goes on with this release. Most of the time, you have sounds traveling around you. It's going in circles or from close to far and back to close. The sounds mostly have a pretty warm quality, like they came from an old Moog synth. But their origins aren't always as clear.

The Effects of 333 marks a serious change in direction for what I feel is one of the better bands out there. It is definitely worth your time. Check out the two tracks below and tell me what you think.

And With This Comes
Sedated With Sterilized Tongues

P.S. On their website, BRMC mentioned that this record was about three years in the making. I'm curious about how much their ex-drummer, Nick Jago, contributed to it. He's had an on and off relationship with the band, usually depending on whether or not he's on the junk. While the music that they write seems to be pretty different without him there (Howl's rootsy folk vs. the shoegaze/psychedelic feel of their first two LPs), the band continues to release great music without his input.