6/10

For the best part of a decade, New York trio A Place To Bury Strangers have been producing some of the darkest mood-driven rock music we have heard. Their brooding style and energetic songwriting has been the focus of much of their career, but this new album has seen them take on a slightly different perspective. Rather than over-produce and tinker about with details on this new record, the band have chosen a more DIY approach, recording each track direct to tape in one take. Giving it a much more raw and authentic sound throughout.

Coming across like Trent Reznor fronting a garage rock band, 'Transfixiation' is this untamed mess of distortion and grizzled vocals that manages to excite and intrigue from the very start. While some of the singles may have given some inclination of what this full-length would sound like, it isn't until you hear it that you get a real sense of what they have been working on. Tracks like 'Deeper' give the album an almost gothic side, while 'Straight' is a punk-rock-by-numbers attempt to deliver some much needed energy into this release.

It certainly is a diverse and enigmatic record from what we would expect from bands in similar scenes. But with so much going on throughout this release, it quickly loses its initial momentum and begins to drag its heels in place. A solid release but not without its occasional bad eggs.