Album Review: Oslow - Oslow

There's something at once tense and soothing about the debut full-length by Sydney outfit Oslow.

While duelling guitar riffs and chaotic drumming keep the band's volume raised (catching Oslow live seems like it would be a truly cathartic experience), these moments are juxtaposed by deliberately excessive reverb such as on tracks like Cold Dark Space. When frontman Dylan Farrugia sings "I've been sewing up my eyelids/To keep everyone distant" on Sewing more than a hint of early '00s post-pop punk nostalgia seeps through the audio, and it all adds up to a confident — albeit not wholly original — opening salvo.