Bosnian Rainbows – S/T
Sargent House/Rodriguez-Lopez Productions
★★★★ (out of 5 stars)
It may seem like a “don’t think about pink elephants” kind of statement, but please try to ignore the fact that Bosnian Rainbows is the latest project by ex-Mars Volta leader Omar Rodríguez-López. There is very little on this group’s debut album to connect it to either Mars Volta or At the Drive-In. Overzealous prog-y ambition has given way to concision and melody, razorwire spazz-punk has been long forgotten in favor of texture and quiet complexity. This is a decidedly less-challenging affair, buoyed in equal measure by the vocal talents of Le Butcherettes singer Teri Gender Bender, a rhythmic approach that leans heavily on cracked LinnDrum parts, and a deep affection for expansive post-punk atmospheres. But none of this is to say that Bosnian Rainbows is either simple or half-baked – in fact, it’s a fairly dense and thoughtful album – even though it’s immediately more accessible than Rodríguez-López’s last band.
