Methyl Ethel
Everything Is Forgotten
Release Date: Mar 3, 2017
Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Indie Rock, Dream Pop, Neo-Psychedelia, Psychedelic Pop
Record label: 4AD
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Album Review: Everything Is Forgotten by Methyl Ethel
Fairly Good, Based on 4 Critics
Based on rating 4/5
'Everything is Forgotten' is an enigmatic record. Flitting between electro-pop and psych, this latest effort from Australian trio Methyl Ethel is a lithe, sinewy creature, by turns weighted and buoyant, half darkness and half shimmering light. The eerie 'Ubu' blends these elements in a slice of Alfred Jarre-inspired surrealism, with self-flagellating lyrics about tackling personal failure sliding into the mundane.
Based on rating 6/10
Perth band Methyl Ethel's Oh Human Spectacle was a solid record, and a promising 2016 debut. But it also suggested they had plenty to prove if they were going to make an impression on the increasingly overcrowded area of psychedelic indie pop. Jake Webb showed himself to be a skilled writer of shimmering psych-pop, but his compositions didn't quite have the bombastic pomp of tracks like Tame Impala's "Elephant" or MGMT's "Electric Feel." In comparison to the dreamy haze of their previous work, Everything Is Forgotten is filled with tracks that have an uptempo, sassy groove that was absent from their debut.
Based on rating 3/5
Oh look, a psychedelic rock band from Perth who began life as their frontman's home recording project before being fleshed out into a live outfit and making waves on the Australian rock scene. Sound familiar? Methyl Ethel's city of origin and taste for lightly trippy textures could have easily left them and their dreamy but diffident debut album 'Oh Inhuman Spectacle' in Tame Impala's shadow forever. Their second, however, goes some way towards carving their own niche.
Based on rating 5/10
Everything Is Forgotten delves in on identity without bearing much fruit. When Methyl Ethel get introspective, they hardly differentiate from alt-indie sounds of a band like Phoenix or the simplistic electronics of a group such as Christine and the Queens. Methyl Ethel's quirk even finds them sounding like a more dazzling version of the Format. Despite all this, the Perth band's sophomore effort manages to glow with its sweet and glittery electronic tracks, pausing from introspection to begin dancing.
'Everything Is Forgotten'
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