Swan Wash - Upstairs Museum

The Upstairs Museum came out at a great time. The modern day apocalypse rages on as businesses, schools and lives are shut down or altered again to battle the great plague that has gripped most of the world. Since there's not much going on, why not spend some more time making or discovering great new music.

The Upstairs Museum contains three new gloomy post-punk infused anthems that fall in line with the previous self-titled release complete with abstract themes paired with driving guitars, intense vocals, killer percussions and synth work. This time around the guitar work is preformed by Jack Andrews instead of Steve Garcia, while Scott Ferguson and Matt Leetz reprise their roles adding vocals, bass, synths and drumming. The previous release by Swan Wash captivated my attention months back and still to this day I have continued to lose myself in its offerings. I found some humor and wonder in the S/T cassette. What the hell kind of name is Swan Wash anyway? Why such esoteric lyrics?  How interesting can leaves, furniture and roofs be? As I mentioned, it was a nice little chuckle as I examined the release. The best part was the sound was right in my wheelhouse of taste. The band continues to dwell in an uncertain place of influence. Swan Wash harvests elements of several musical approaches from punk to post-punk to new wave and dark wave and even some shoegaze and death rock. It's tough to find a point of reference which can be frustrating for the reviewer, but ultimately a compliment to the artist. 

Swan Wash finds ways to generate appeal and appreciation from me, and I believe they can do they same for you. Too bad there are only three tracks on The Upstairs Museum. Fortunately for us, each track is a delightful treat just waiting to enter your playlists and become part of the soundtrack to continue to watch the world burn.





Nov 21 2020