A powerful and captivating debut album...
“Some individuals are just here to drive me crazy,” declares the soft Scouse accent of ‘Unreal’s’ unreliable narrator, Ned Green, amid the chaos of the early album standout ‘Sleepers, Awake’. Within the cathartic blend of its intricate, interlocking guitar rhythms and chaotic brass bursts, Green’s spoken-word observations shine with a sharp clarity, displaying the same dry humor that characterizes the best works of Richard Dawson, Neil Blackwell, Chris Morris, and others. He seeks greater significance in the mundane, yearns for ecstasy in daily life, and if his ultimate aim is to be the first rock and roll artist to mention the ‘Shaver Only’ plug socket, he achieves it with flair.
Legss have quietly been a part of the South London music scene for nearly a decade. While the ephemeral excitement surrounding countless buzz bands has flared up and then faded away, Legss have been methodically developing, nurturing, and refining their sound. The outcome is a blend that weaves together haunting post-punk elements with a broader array of cabaret embellishments and post-rock excitement—executed flawlessly.
As far as debut albums are concerned, ‘Unreal’ is both confident and captivating. There are no timid gestures here. Legss’ approach combines scratchy, edgy autre-rock with tranquil ballads, with the standout tracks highlighting the spectrum of their sound. ‘909’ is an electrifying anthem that captures the powerful rhythms reminiscent of Wire and the Contortions, while Green’s cryptic talk-radio monologue stands out as one of the most striking aspects of the album: “it’s your views, it’s your car.”
The intense moments land effectively, particularly due to the striking effect of the serene, reflective interludes. ‘Nothing Would Make Me Happier’ exemplifies this with its gentle basslines and slack, melancholic guitar reminiscent of Pavement, as Green reflects: “So that’s why the saying goes: ‘let’s play house under the merry-go of the boughs.’” Meanwhile, ‘Eversince’, possibly the album’s highlight, is a haunting, expansive post-rock ballad, evoking the orchestral grandeur of Fleet Foxes and Lucio Battisti, while ‘Bit Rot’ erupts into a cacophony of Branca-esque guitar noise before resolving into a romantic “ba-da, ba-ba-ba-da” chorus—simply wonderful.
‘Unreal’ has been a long-awaited release, yet it doesn’t feel weighed down by expectations. It represents a genuinely contemporary and intelligent interpretation of post-punk, featuring sharper arrangements and more ideas than most of their peers. Legss are certainly onto something significant here.
8/10
Words: Cal Cashin
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Hello, I’m Byron, and I consider ADAS to be a four-letter word.
No, that’s not something your phone can translate. ADAS stands for "Advanced Driver Assistance Systems," which is a vague term that encompasses any software-based safety mechanism that provides a digital buffer between you and your surroundings. Systems like lane keeping assist, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control—and even Tesla’s so-called Full Self-Driving—fall under this category. In general, I’m not a fan of any of them.
It’s not that they are inherently bad—though one could argue otherwise from a behavioral perspective. My issue lies with their tendency to overstep their role, intervening when they are neither necessary nor appreciated. Few things are as annoying as battling against an electronic assistant trying to protect me from myself.
Imagine this:
You’re driving on a two-lane rural road and enter a small town. Approaching a busy district, you encounter a delivery truck blocking your lane. There’s no oncoming traffic, so you cautiously steer your car into the opposite lane to pass.
BEEP BEEP BEEP! BEEP BEEP BEEP!
That's your lane departure warning, of course. Now the lane keeping assist is attempting to nudge the steering wheel back to the right, despite the parked truck in the way. You rapidly steer left again, overriding the system. Then you complete your pass and continue on your way. Or, if you’re like me, you end up spending five minutes scrolling through menus trying to figure out how you forgot to disable that feature.
But there’s a newcomer in town, dressed in blue and white. It’s BMW! And its “superbrain” architecture is just what I need right now. Its superpower? Bestowing its new ADAS suite with the distinctive ability to do nothing at all. And no, I don’t mean you can turn it off; that capability is nearly a given. While I’m sure BMW has enhanced its object detection abilities and reduced false alarms, that’s not what I mean either.
I’m referring to a system that can essentially read your mind—or at least your eyes—well enough to know when it should act like a reformed back-seat driver and, well, stay quiet.
Let’s revisit that scenario, but this time we’re in a BMW Neue Klasse of some kind.
We approach the truck, systems fully active, and attempt the same maneuver, but this time, nothing occurs. Why? Because BMW has fine-tuned its software to recognize signs of intent.
When you scan for oncoming traffic in the adjacent lane, BMW’s eye sensor—capable of monitoring driver attention and even detecting early signs of drowsiness—catches your glance. When this look is paired with a corresponding steering motion, the system understands you’re acting deliberately. Unless it identifies a clear immediate safety hazard in your new direction, it won’t trigger any alarms or adjust your steering.
Instead? Silent compliance. Or, as I prefer to call it, the dream.
BMW’s new logic also facilitates smoother transitions between manual and autonomous driving modes, essentially removing the need to toggle them at all; the car will respond to inputs by relinquishing control to the driver. This only scratches the surface of what BMW's new electrical architecture is capable of; anticipate further intelligent system integration in the future.
Have a tip? Reach out to us at [email protected].](https://newmusicpulse.space/thumbs/newmusicpulse.space-700/d9/41/Armand-Hammer--The-Alchemist-Announce-New-Album-Mercy.webp)
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"Some individuals exist solely to really stress me out," declares the softened Scouse tone of 'Unreal's' unreliable narrator, Ned Green, amid the chaos.