Fog - Ether Teeth

Fog’s second album, ETHER TEETH, shows more restraint from his self-titled debut. The opening track, “Plum Dumb,” is a hazy dream in a sunny countryside. Many of the tracks that follow hem closely to the indie rock spirit, with some folk sensibilities thrown in there (“Up a Anvil Tree” is an excellent example). The beats aren’t as bombastic, and he shows greater control over the extraneous noises that detracted from his debut. “Boys Not Allowed” recombines these elements into a somewhat cohesive whole. The vocals, however, have a strained, lo-fi quality that match the subdued mood of the album, even if they can be grating in large amounts. “Wallpaper Sink or Swim,” at its 11-minute running time, is a sound collage that doesn’t integrate its elements as much as it simply juxtaposes them. A strange and subtle album.