Night Control - Death Control

For the majority of musicians working from a standpoint similar to that of Christopher Curtis Smith, recording with limited resources functions as a reaction to the bells and whistles of big studio recordings and all they've come to represent. But, the charm of "Death Control," Smith's first release under the Night Control moniker, is that through all of its ramshackled, makeshift glory it strives to evoke the grandiose strokes and layered textures of a sixties studio pop record.

It’s an album that feels highly realized, calculated even. Each stomp of a distortion pedal is exactly where it needs to be. Each moment of reverb-soaked, blissful indistinctness is counteracted by a resolute piano interlude or a melody that would stop British invasion obsessives in their tracks. Nevertheless, “Death Control” remains on the periphery of pop music. It’s too laden with tape hiss and Jesus and Mary Chain caterwaul to please listeners unengaged by the music of the margins. This is part of its beauty.

The bells and whistles that make "Death Control" feel so complete are likely attributable to some well executed pedal tricks, tape loops, and Smith and his musician friends bringing their A-games. What ultimately brings me back to it again and again are the songs. Each is an ambitious hashing out of ideas that transcend recording quality. It’s just a hunch, but I imagine the songs that make up “Death Control” would sound great even if a Talkboy was used to record them.