Post Office Gals – Esbeohdes / 2006 On The Rise / 10 Tracks / http://www.thepostofficegals.com / http://www.otrrecords.com / Reviewed 11 February 2006

I think that The Post Office Gals have a lot in common with The Men’s Recovery Project in that there are so many different things happening in each track on “Esbeohdes”. This means that eighties rock (Robert Palmer) mixes with noise, thrash, electro-punk and dance to make something that is completely new to virgin ears. The first real foray into this type of sound happens with “I Wanna See You Naked On The Internet” and does not end there; it is a theme that is expanded through the rest of the disc. Through it all, especially during “Steam Powered Oscillating Machines”, The Post Office Gals infuse each of their tracks with a certain groove-worthy aspect; instead of just jerking around crazily, individuals can also come forth as willing dance participants and not look incredibly stupid.

There has been an upswing in the use of synthesizers by these noise bands in the last few years, and I think The Post Office Gals are one of the bands that actually know how to use the instrument to its full benefit. It bolsters the other parts of the track instead of sounding completely removed from it; this corrects the one major hang-up of previous generations of noise acts in the scene that the bands sounded so patch-work at the beginning of the genre. Coming forth with a guitar line that would seem more proper in a Fear Factory track, “Right Click My Heart Save As Broken” shows that the Gals can continually come up with different approaches to their music that will keep listeners coming back for more. It is a rare band that can come up with an entire album in less than thirteen minutes; The Post Office Gals do just that, in the sense that each track seems twice its stated runtime due to the sheer gravity exerted by each of these tracks. Like a strand of Christmas lights, the music of The Post Office Gals is so knotty and difficult to unwind that listeners will spend hours on trying to decipher what is reality a very short album.

With none of the tracks on the disc longer than two and a half minutes, The Post Office Gals show that they have spent the year and a half of their existence smartly by only putting forth the most essential constructs that they can on this disc. Well worth the money even if the music to time ratio is not high, “Esbeohdes” shows The Post Office Gals as a band that knows their way around music.

Top Tracks: Good I’m Glad, This Is Krunktronics!

Rating: 6.5/10

[JMcQ]