Xander Harris
California Chrome
Release Date: Sep 23, 2016
Genre(s): Electronic, Neo-Electro, Neo-Disco, Darkwave
Record label: Rock Action
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Album Review: California Chrome by Xander Harris
Very Good, Based on 3 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
As Xander Harris, Austin-based electronic musician Justin Sweatt has been perfecting his brand of suspenseful horror-disco since the early 2010s. Following two excellent full-lengths for Los Angeles label Not Not Fun as well as several singles, EPs, and cassettes, California Chrome is his most high-profile release yet, arriving on Mogwai's Rock Action label. He's always had a knack for making ambitious, conceptual music while remaining relatively low-tech, with his tracks generally having a gritty, home-constructed feel (tape noise is audible on some of these tracks, but not an overwhelming amount).
Based on rating 3/5
Buffy California Chrome. California Chrome.
Opinion: Very Good
First things first: Xander Harris won’t eat your brains. Not anymore, at least. The Austin synth sorcerer – AKA Justin Sweatt – who had something of a cult hit with his 2011 debut lovingly spoofing B-movie horror has matured in the years that passed, and returns with a record that appears more and more opaque with each listen.
'California Chrome'
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