Crater: Talk To Me So I Can Fall Asleep Review

By Ezlyh Gutierrez
Music Journalist

Artist: Crater
Album: Talk to Me So I Can Fall Asleep
Label: Help Yourself Records
Release Date: February 26th, 2016
Website: craterbabes.bandcamp.com

If you’re a sucker for stories about millennial relationships with a punch of grungy electro­pop and most importantly, angst, I welcome you to Nirvana. Talk to Me So I Can Fall Asleep is a melting pot of “I kind of love you, behind my cellphone screen,” “nah, never mind,” and “let’s dance.” Although that description may seem odd or random, it’s actually the best way to describe the overall aura that Crater’s Ceci Gomez and Kessiah Gordon created in this enchanting configuration.

Even though I’m personally over the forever popular concept of ‘angsty music,’ this album has reminded me why the theme is as popular as it is. This work begins with heavy bass and beats similar to something you would hear by Joy Division or The Cure. Crater enhances their already catchy bass lines by adding their own unique curve of poppy melodies but still keeping the aesthetics of distortion in their sound. Imagine combining a mainstream band’s ability to keep a chorus stuck in your head with New Order’s electronic excellence into the mix. That right there is Crater in a nutshell. It’s your guilty pleasure of pop music disguised in trendy clothing that, for some reason, makes you like it a little more.

Some highlights throughout this album are pieces such as ‘Crater Head’ that give the listener a dreamy vibe while keeping their attention with a deep, distinct beat and tune. This song keeps you relaxed, yet anticipating more. Progressing further, more is exactly what you get with ‘hardly at all’ and ‘brew.’ These two tunes are moving, showy, and exciting. Beginning with hair­-raising intros and keeping you active with dancey choruses. Similar to the sense of listening to a Tegan and Sara hit with a deeper and darker aura.

Talk to Me So I can Fall Asleep has a very angsty, hopeless romantic vibe while maintaining the illusion that you are listening Halsey, an edgier Halsey, who dyed their hair black over the weekend and smokes one or two cigarettes more than usual. And you dig it, you dig this new Halsey.