MooseTooth are an Indianapolis, USA-based five piece who refuse to be defined by, or even care about, genre. It was that attitude that inspired the name of their debut album It All Tastes The Same, a project that incorporates folk, rock, psych, jazz and a whole bunch else. Here’s my track by track review.
By Graeme Smith
Feature photo by Ellie East
The album opens with vibrant, high-energy The Waltz Bit. It’s a track that combines a classic swagger with some forward-thinking tendencies which proves the band’s thesis about genre right from the off. After some rapid-fire verses it dissolves into a noodling, psychedelic instrumental odyssey. A great start!
Birthday Candles takes things in an acoustic country folk direction, but not as we know it. Its lyrical story is charming and its rustic approach utterly compelling. At just over a minute long, we don’t spend a lot of time with it, but it does stick with you.
Wet Heave, Dry Heave, Die is another momentary vignette. Even shorter, it brings a quick one-two punch of heavy riffs and passionate vocals. In true punk fashion, there’s not a moment or note wasted, and it leaves the way it came in – suddenly.
Brian at Rest / Brian on the Mosey / Brian’s Best is a trio of psychedelic movements. The band describe the eponymous Brian as “a real piece of sh*t” and his story is delivered through a jazz and funk instrumental arrangement. At over five minutes, it’s the longest track on the record and one that you can get lost in.
Jane combines the acoustic folk elements of Birthday Candles with the jazziness of Brian… Among their inspirations, Moosetooth include Pink Floyd, Yes and King Crimson and those influences come through strongest here. It’s a wonderful piece of atmospheric prog rock and a definite highlight.
Lizbeth acts as the album’s midpoint, a short, dreamy, jangly piece of indie rock before moving seamlessly into Things I Need. Opening with gentle acoustic guitar, it moves into the jazzy prog that had come to the fore in the last few tracks.
Oh! Henry brings an unexpected return to country folk. I found the vocals particularly moving during a soaring chorus. Spite follows, a stripped-back moment of acoustic punk that articulates its anger well.
Faithful is MooseTooth at their most soulful. A track that conveys a bittersweet love story it manages to feel relatable while remaining quirky and experimental – quite a feat. It serves as the album’s climax before things are rounded off by In Your Hands, a two-and-a-bit minute psychedelic meditation.
This is a great debut album. MooseTooth haven’t been afraid to push the boundaries of music while channelling classic influences into a distinctive sound of their own. It’s a bold and innovative collection from a group who clearly love what they’re doing. The joy is infectious.
You can check out the whole of It All Tastes The Same below.
