Though All Is Illusory is the Velvet Teen’s first LP in nine years and is being released on a trendsetting label, I’m not sure it could be accurately called "highly anticipated." The California quartet released a few solid records of experimental, mid-aughts indie pop that were easy to overlook because they never quite fit into any sort of trend or local scene. In fact, their biggest moment since 2006 was probably accidental: they may have been momentarily confused with the German band Velveteen, who generated a brief period of notoriety in 2008 by disguising their own album as a "leaked" advance copy of Death Cab For Cutie’s Narrow Stairs (the Velvet Teen’s debut Out of the Fierce Parade was produced by former Death Cab guitarist Chris Walla). But the lack of expectations actually can benefit All Is Illusory by allowing Velvet Teen to establish a new identity. Topshelf has relaunched the careers of certified emo O.G.s Braid and the Jazz June and introduced them to younger fans drawn in by the leaders of the new school. Does this mean the Velvet Teen have been grandfathered into the genre?
All Is Illusory suggests they have, but in an unexpected way—it might be the only record to ever fit into emo based solely on its drums. The Velvet Teen became a much more interesting band with the addition of Casey Deitz in 2006 and he’s been allowed the opportunity to serve as a de facto voice in addition to Judah Nagler. Deitz applies the spectacular technique of speed metal to everything you could learn from listening to Jawbox, Braid, the Promise Ring, and American Football records just for the rhythm sections—channeling the urgent, kinetic and unpredictable physicality that distinguished these bands from the more staid and slack "college rock" of the mid-to-late '90s.
To clarify, Nagler has proven quite adept at the spirited, unhinged singing of this style, though it appears he may have taking a few vocal lessons since the Velvet Teen's quietly released 2010 EP No Star. He’s still as much of a belter as he was on Cum Laude!, only now he removes the distorted mic filters and projects into Buckley-esque ululations, dusky mutters and, on "The Manifest", a vocoder. Taken out of context, Nagler now sounds like he could’ve fronted one of those "next Radiohead" Brit-rock bands that cropped up at the turn of the century. As it turns out, his unorthodox, Yorke-ish means of enunciation and pronunciation also tends to wad up lyrics which might actually be better off being misunderstood. Lean into what Nagler’s actually saying and finicky, self-impressed bon mots cut against the plaintive narrator: "Oh, finally a taste/ Words fall from my ellipses," "If you can take my chaos, baby/ I’ll map your terrain." That said, "I was made from dust/ Call me Macgyver," makes me think he appreciates Dipset deep cuts.
But this is Dietz’s album, and the emotional status of All Is Illusory is best demonstrated by actions rather than words. Deitz underlines the instability and wanderlust evoked by "Sonreo", as tricky fills and pivots allow him to keep pace with a player piano having a nervous breakdown. Erratic bursts of double time and pounded open hi-hats express the romantic hopelessness on "Eclipses", while the impulsive "You Were the First" is power pop played like a noise duo—it could pass for Vampire Weekend being covered by Lightning Bolt or vice versa. Either way, I'm not sure I've heard anything quite like it.
Otherwise, I can say I have heard All Is Illusory before and you likely have as well if you lived through the mid-2000s and owned a record or two released on Barsuk. "Pecos" and "Sonreo" take after Menomena’s idea of pop collage, big, whirling synth loops, cut-and-paste production, and chunky percussion that focus on the band’s process rather than persona. But All Is Illusory is too reliant on Deitz’s involvement, and it slumps whenever he has to play a supporting role rather than the lead. Oddly enough, this doesn’t occur during the nearly 11 minutes taken up by "Taken Over", where the insistent, patience-testing repetition of its doleful melody is the entire point. Instead, "The Giving In" and "Church or State" are typical "atmospheric" mid-album padding, Deitz assigned to swaying waltz time and staid rattle and hum while backing pealing, gleaming Edge guitars. For all of their upgraded production, instrumental technique, and influences, All Is Illusory sounds like a record that primes the Velvet Teen to succeed around the time Cum Laude! was released—but making the best "2006 indie rock" record of 2015 makes them stand out in a way that they hadn’t managed yet.
