March 17, 2014

Scraps’ “Electric Ocean” Is Quiet, Lonely, and Addictive

Courtesy of Fire Records

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Scraps
Electric Ocean
Fire

Ramshackle, often inscrutable and surprisingly poignant, Electric Ocean is a sneaky-good, one-woman display of do-it-yourself prowess by Laura Hill of Brisbane, Australia. Drenched in vintage analog electronics, including eccentric thrift-shop synths and rattling, clunky drum machines, Scraps’ songs feel like fleetingly glimpsed transmissions from a distant dimension. Hill buries her echo-heavy voice in the murky mix, sounding lonely and even desolate at times, but never succumbs to self-indulgence, thanks to deceptively melodic tunes that never overstay their welcome. Electric Ocean is mesmerizing, quietly unnerving, and highly addictive.

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