April 24, 2023

We Will Ride Fast – Army of Invisible Zombies: Album Review ⭐⭐⭐

We Will Ride Fast is the handle for Kyle Sattler, who describes himself as a multi-media artist, multi-instrumental musician and singer. Army of Invisible Zombies is his third album in this incarnation of himself.

He has been in previous bands including Frayden and Seedy Burners. Currently holds a position of tutor for the Bachelor of Creative Industries Degree, at To Ohomai Institute in Tauranga.

We Will Ride Fast He works in the fields of visual arts which include film. This album project was funded by the institute. He sings and plays everything and produced it himself.

Best described as ambient alternative pop music. Lyrically dense with philosophical and esoteric musings.

All the songs have simple drone rhythms. There are no real peaks or troughs, no tension and release. Those rhythms are danceable, like a rave party or a modern-day hippie/yoga/spiritual festival or gathering.

Title track Army of Invisible Zombies invokes images of a horror splatter B-movie. You won’t see those zombies, just the effects of their attack. Simple drone music with dead-panned vocals.

The video accompanying this is footage from the drag-racing at the Meremere speedway. A family member Paul Pins Sattler is a champion racer, and his utterly cool beast of a vehicle called Vindicator is featured. It sort of makes sense if you don’t think about it too much and let the tone creep gently into your mind from repeated listens.

Opening track Best Burner is one of the stronger cuts from the album. I like the spectral glassy electronic tones from a keyboard or synth. No sense in making it happen/ If you only live to regret it. The music washes over you in waves like the theme to Doctor Who. A Sixties connection then, to the experimental music labs of the BBC, and possibly Joe Meek. Who wrote and produced the original smash hit Telstar.

Running Into You has a great dominant bass rhythm which sounds a bit like Joy Division, and in fact more like New Order in its ability to make you move. This endless cycle of ours/ Insignificance. The extended outro is a nice dance drone.

Evergreen is the closest to sounding like conventional pop. This is his most expressive singing. Most of the time it is low-key, and he emphasises the Kiwi drawl.

Symbols has that voice. In the sunlight of the symbol/ Your time will come/ Just fight for one hundred years not out. Purposefully obscure lyrics matched to offbeat Kiwi humour. In this country many love cricket, whilst the unenlightened may hate the greatest team game in the world.

Unfolding Into Space has an art school punk sensibility like Wire, with its creeping bass line.

Sattler has said one of his desert island discs would be Brian Eno’s Ambient Music. The other is Lee Perry’s Ultimate Upsetter collection.

There you have it. Consciously arty ambient pop music with dance hooks that become apparent on repeated listens. The lyrics contain multitudes.

⭐⭐⭐

Rev Orange Peel