Schizophrenically experimental, noise, shoegaze, punk with some good old-fashioned rock n’ roll sprinkled throughout for good measure, forward-sounding Los Angeles natives No Age outperform themselves in their bright and stellar (in both the judgmental sense as well as stylistically in the sense of the intergalactic and interplanetary) third record Everything in Between (the first two were a compilation of collected singles on 2007’s Weirdo Rippers and their 2008 record, Nouns). A unique and energetic outfit, No Age sound like an upgraded, modified and well-kept out of date machine. With their do-it-yourself and unpolished aesthetic, their music sounds paradoxically nostalgic yet futuristic, simplistic yet complex. This is no small feat either, with their subject matter rated at its most extreme a friendly PG; the music is accessible, fun, youthful, which takes a turn at times to the realm of the ambiguous and sonically estranging, but nevertheless makes the record an enjoyable and interesting experience. Listening to Everything in Between took me back to my weekly travels with my old friend Carl Sagan, cruising through wormholes and visiting nearby solar systems, unexpectedly coming into contact with the majesty of planets, the serenity of nebulas, the impressive power of supergiants and dangerous asteroid belts backgrounded by the beautiful teardrops of light that adorn the soundless and vast cosmic ocean.  This is kind of stuff that’s contained within Everything in Between.

In a nutshell, you might say, the album pushes in unconventional (which might be or is becoming conventional?) out-of-the-ordinary directions that pushes forward an impressive noise of sonic, to refer to Carl Sagan (again!), ‘space stuff’ that complements the instrumentation, the lyrics and the presentation/performance of its composition.  While Flying Lotus’ Cosmogramma could be perhaps viewed as its stylistic antithesis more geared towards the approach the technologically savvy and the digital human being might take in exploring the tunnels and warps of the sonic universe, No Age’s Everything in Between is more of the charming cardboard spaceship you made as a kid, the kid who constantly dreamed of a future filled with spectacular outer space adventures. If you’re like me who’s growing tired of the bombardment of electro, techno, and just want to say “hell no,” No Age might be what you’ve been seeking this whole time. If you’re just a music snob and pride yourself on some peculiar yet ostensibly good sounds, this is definitely for you’s as well. If you’re looking for something else, something that utilizes more traditional instruments toward a particular and thought-provoking sonic texture, I sincerely recommend mathematical rockers No Age as a band altogether and thus unreservedly their work on Everything in Between as well!

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