watercoolerdictator
A splash of Tom Tom Club here, a dash of Out Hud there...very enjoyable indeed. Look good, smell good, show up on time...repeat.
Favorite track: Repeat.
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"NAKED ROOMMATE was conceived in 2018 by Amber Sermeńo & Andy Jordan --- partners in art & life --- as a playful aside from their roles in Oakland’s most dearly-departed ensemble, THE WORLD. With a handful of twitching insta-sketches, each addled with late-nite D.I.Y. quiver, the duo’s side-hustle sprouted in classical easy/cheap fashion [see the demo tape on their Public Nipples imprint for evidence]. As “global” concerns slowed, compatriots Michael Zamora (a superbly slanted multi-instrumentalist late of BAD BAD) and Alejandra Alcala (the region’s one true bass supervisor, also of bright lights BLUES LAWYER and PREENING) joined Sermeńo & Jordan as additional exposed flesh. In full form, Naked Roommate has not only become a must-see, ever-evolving live act, but architects of Do The Duvet, one of the most intriguing and inspired recordings to come out of 2020’s American subterranea.
Do The Duvet proffers leftfield hijinks via punk execution, answering all the questions posed by questionable post-punk revivalism with sour lemon sneering and cherry-sweet smiles. It’s a fever dream, really…A flailing, sparking wire of hyper-compressed rhythms (breathing and synthetic), devolved guitar work and minced electronic compost. The resultant congealed groove is suitable for club situations and/or living space pulsations alike. Either way, the landlord is pissed.
Jordan’s beat programming, presumably inspired in part by recent obsessions with unjustifiably discarded electro sounds, manages to elicit physical response without veering into genre clichés like decay dance or Armageddon rave. Instead, movement is prompted by sheer playfulness and high humour: see the sleepily sampled City sax on “Fondu Guru” or the comically taut bassline from “Credit Union”, itself a dreamwork born straight from a lovingly held-tight 99 Records 12”. Thematically, Do The Duvet bounces between dissections of bourgeois trickery, the absurdity of domestication and the recognizable insanity of living in this particular age. As narrator, Sermeńo’s vocal presence is time-capsule great: a commanding grand-slam performance, alluring yet switchblade-dangerous in terms of wit and gaze. So totally wonderful.
What do you really own, anyway? What if your home does not even exist? Why not simply Do The Duvet and answer these queries yourself?"
-Mitch Cardwell
credits
released September 4, 2020
Naked Roommate is:
Amber Sermeńo: Lead Vocals
Andy Jordan: Drum programming, synths, percussion, backing vocals
Alejandra Alcala: Bass, backing vocals
Michael Zamora: Guitar, synths, samples, backing vocals, percussion, cowbell
Music by Naked Roommate
Lyrics by Amber Sermeńo except "Repeat" & "(Re )P.R.O.D.U.C.E.", lyrics by Andy Jordan and "We Are The Babies" lyrics by Sermeńo/Jordan/Zamora/Alcala
Sax on "Fondu Guru" by Judith Horn, a.k.a. Jeanne Oss
Sax on "Credit Union" by Stanley Martinez
Guitar & bass on "Credit Union" by Andy Jordan
Burp by Amber
Additional backing vocals on "Je Suis Le Bebe" by Rayna Kilroy
Recorded by Michael and Andy, winter 2019-spring 2020.
Mixed by Michael and the band at Grassy Null, Oakland.
Mastered by Mikey Young.
Thanks to Katie Beata Bryan for extra handclaps and Polaroids and to Clam Boy for nightsweat baptisms.
Naked Roommate is a desiring-machine that embodies the union of opposites pointing towards the ever-becoming, ever-real utopia of flows. We are not symbol or representation. We are imaginary, we are real, we are virtual and we are impossible.
Specializing in bright, sunny "bedroom rock español," this Brooklyn singer-songwriter puts a unique spin on lo-fi music. Bandcamp New & Notable Jan 18, 2024
This Baltimore group rough up post-punk with dark post-hardcore riffs and chaotic choruses, never losing a fine-tuned sense of melody. Bandcamp New & Notable Jan 13, 2024
Let it be stated:
rock music needs more harmonies,
keys, and wild beauty.
(Fortunately, this one has it all!)
for more Very Good Haiku Reviews, visit:
comeawaywithemd.com/very-good-haiku-a-2021-music-writing-experiment/
EMD