Holograms first surfaced under a veil of anonymity. As soon as Captured Tracks heard a demo, the label signed them, released their first single, shared a video, and pretty much said "stay tuned." Then, because it's 2012 and that's how things are done now, the band revealed who they were: four twenty-somethings from Stockholm. Interviews with Holograms shared a common theme: "The band's members are all very poor right now." And thus far, their story's revolved around an unfortunate series of incidents: Their van got broken into on a support tour, they were stranded in France for almost two weeks with no money, they can't afford decent gear, and they're not sure if they'll be able to obtain work visas to tour the United States.
It's fitting, then, that in addition to offering synth-driven songs that nod to post-punk and hardcore, the themes and overall tone of Holograms' self-titled debut are ridiculously weighty. The most obvious example is "You Are Ancient (Sweden's Pride)", which lays out their country's history (Vikings, rape, Lutheran fearmongering) as something to be ashamed of. There's "Memories of Sweat", a hellish industrialization song carried by an urgent, ominous riff. The churning basher "ABC City" is centered around the words "isolation" and "desolation." These themes are sung with a strong monolithic confidence, usually with two or three voices in unison. Taking on such onerous subject matter is a bold move for a young band to make on their first full-length.
Thankfully, though, they don't double down on the world-weary stuff for the entire album. "Orpheo" is a substantially quieter, more vulnerable song about longing. It halts the album's big picture focus for a moment and illustrates a love story with small, poignant details like pulling down the blinds "vicariously." "Chasing My Mind" opens with a joyful synth line, a ragged guitar drive, and eventually reveals itself as a love song, while "Fever" sounds almost sunny in its disposition. The lyrics aren't exactly complex ("she stayed in my mind forever"), but it's easy to find respite in those moments.
Even when they're digging into the grit of a country's flaws or society's problems, the synth-driven hooks can be outright jovial. The run in the middle of the album, from "Apostate" to "ABC City" to "Stress", showcases the band's versatility in melody writing: from a stilted funky rhythm to an unstoppable propulsive rock basher to a rolling, echoing, ska-leaning bassline. On paper, it's a delicate balancing act. Love songs? Monolithic vocals? Raw power rock'n'roll? Synthesizers? It's a tenuous mix, but throughout Holograms, the boys manage to string together all of those elements to create a cohesive, solid album.
