Letting Up Despite Great Faults consist of a collection of lo-fi vocals and mellow shoegaze meets indie pop. Summer-fresh guitars and synths sweep the listener away at the beginning of Untogether with “Visions.” Almost seamlessly, the next piece, “Scratch,” flows right in. The second number keeps true to its name by featuring choppy and scratchy electronic drum beats. As Untogether progresses, Mike Lee’s lo-fi vocals become increasingly distant, adding a dreamy feel to the disc. The album is different and fresh though it lacks originality, as most tracks sound the same—making the release move at a painfully slow pace. “Bulletproof Girl” seems to be going in a different direction in the beginning, though the constant loop of the intro throughout parts of the song wears out one’s ears.
Most of the numbers on Untogether don’t fall on the up-tempo spectrum; however, “Details Of My World” and “Numbered Days” changes that. “Numbered Days” features harsher blips and drum bits lifting the release up, even if it’s at the end of the tracklisting. The California quartet closes out the release with a sweet and peaceful acoustic number, “On Your Mark.” The final two numbers were the strongest on the collection, as they added that spice that Untogether was missing. Letting Up Despite Great Faults’ fall release is a break away from the crazy summertime life.
In A Word: Chill
