Artist Icarus Himself

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Icarus Himself

Icarus Himself—now three strong with Nick Whetro, Karl Christensen, and Brad Kolberg on drums—got an awful lot of mileage out of 2010’s short Mexico EP. Rightfully so, since that brief glimpse at where the band was headed didn’t waste a minute, jumping right into the excellent “Digging Holes” and not losing focus until the furious final bars of “Seen It Coming (Mexico).” The new full-length, Career Culture, picks right up where the band left off, with the surging “Wake Up” building a good head of steam for windmill-riffing “Anywhere You Go” to ride through the ceiling.Career Culture maintains a bit of warped Western charm with the help of songs like “Mornings At The Bar,” but at points the band breaks toward new ground, as in the wondrous “On Your Side,” which enters amidst a stinging swirl of distorted organ and meditative vocals, gaining shape, definition, and edge from intuitive guitar, bass, and drums.

Updated 09/28/2011