6 Not Wonk – Down the Valley (Indie Rock, Post-Hardcore – June 5th)

June was a big month for indie rock. Black midi made an album that felt new in a genre space so well run-through it might as well be buried, and Mannequin Pussy put out one of those rare song oriented indie rock records, one where aesthetic and posturing are sidelined in favor of songs firsts. It’s getting harder and harder for me to find indie rock albums I care about each year. Perhaps my back library is just too immense to surmount. I mean every indie rock album is competing against every album from Daydream Nation to Funeral, what chance does any new album stand?

I think Not Wonk reveal that the secret to success in the face of genre claustrophobia is relentless undeterred gut-slitting. Down The Valley is the sound of a band emptying their coffers down to the last measly coin of strength they have. In the visceral breakdown of the title track, or the scum raking emotional release of “Of Reality” it’s relentlessly plunging. No corner, sonically or lyrically, avoids uncovering. It is passionate young kids trying to make the kind of blood-on-the-guitar masterpiece that worked for Slint, Dismemberment Plan, or Unwound. Does it achieve masterpiece status? I’d say it’s a fair shake shy of it considering the weak final thrid, but fuck are they willing to go the depths they need to earn that title.

That opening track’s breakdown is one of the years most preposterous statements of will, and the album’s seven minute closer is one of the years most preposterous statements of purpose. The voice might put some of you off, but this is for sure up there for me as one of the year’s best indie rock albums.