Style: Experimental Rock, Art Rock, Noise Rock (mostly clean vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Dead Kennedys, Modest Mouse
Country: Colorado, United States
Release date: 10 January 2025
One of my favourite pastimes when I was younger was drawing. I enjoyed the act of creation, of forcefully extracting something from the infinite comfort of non-existence. But I was also a perfectionist; I hated the thought of painting the “wrong” colour or penning a line of ink in the “wrong” place. So, I developed a sketchy, fuzzy kind of art style, usually using pencil, which meant that I never had to commit to an idea; I could always change my mind later, or blame the messiness on the art style itself. There is a vulnerability in being public, in being clear and precise and unapologetic. Hiding in the safety of the messy, uncommitted corner, I could always anaemically defend against any criticism of my work with a “well it’s just a sketch, anyway”.
TULPA‘s latest release, Plum Pinball, feels like it comes from a very similar place: one of defensiveness, of wanting to create but in a non-committal way—of fear. The title track, “Plum Pinball”, even hints at this masturbatory false bravado: “shut up and listen, I’m plum pinballing” says ‘I am important, shut up and listen to this art I created to pleasure myself and myself only (unless you like it and want to join in, as well)’. Two hands are better than one.
This is the case for many experimental albums: the would-be artist wants to create music but (a) does not know how to play an instrument, (b) does not know how to sing, (c) cannot construct songs, (d) cannot write lyrics… take your pick. TULPA can do some of these things, some better than others, but none of them extremely well. They struggle to create music in the same way a snake struggles to shed its skin—they instinctively know that they can do it, but it is a time-consuming, labour-intensive, uncomfortable process.
On first listen, Plum Pinball is about as enjoyable as a root canal. On “True Crimes”, the shrieking distorted guitar, the nasally scream-singing, and the perfectly milquetoast rhythm section make you regret the sin of having ears. The lyrics on “Part-Time Mortician” read as though someone trained an AI chatbot on edgy YouTube comments written by preteens underneath Jordan Peterson videos: “And my friends could all choke, and my family could choke / On their smoke, and I’d laugh ’cause I know that it’s what they deserve. / (D.A.R.E.) / (Soft eugenics).” I’d suggest taking a chill pill, but this band already seem overmedicated.
On the other hand, if you’ve got a masochistic side and listen to this album a few times, it grows on you, like a particularly aggressive melanoma. There are some redeemable aspects: the vocalist has a distinctive timbre and significant power considering just how high of a register they sing in—for example, on “The New Black Something Something”. “Mission Tripperz” is about as close as this album gets to indie rock and would be well-received by fans of Modest Mouse. Despite its edgelord lyrics, “Part-Time Mortician” has catchy vocal melodies, an infectious momentum, and is one of the few tracks on the album that feels truly “fleshed out”, filling in empty spaces with synths and double-tracked guitars.
Is Plum Pinball groundbreaking? Not particularly. Is it catchy? Only when it isn’t actively repellent. Is it something I would listen to again? Almost certainly not. But would I listen to the next TULPA album? Absolutely. Art is meant to make you feel something, not necessarily something good, but something: it may intrigue or repulse you, but it should never bore you. Plum Pinball needs further distillation to its essential elements, more sincerity, and less intentionally sarcastic edginess in its lyrical themes in order to be a great album. TULPA need to allow themselves to be vulnerable.
Recommended tracks: Part-Time Mortician, Mission Tripperz
You may also like: DE()T, Bomb, Nunchukka Superfly
Final verdict: 4/10
Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Label: independent
TULPA is:
– Jacob Gustafson (everything)
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