c.layne
[#] Maps of Us (2014)
Glossy black desire, yearning, and everything in between.
Reviewed May 30, 2025
A darkly melodic, reverb-tinged, minimalist psychedelic rock album? Sounds familiar... Antonymic isn't the only familiar point in the c.layne catalog here either—"Confess"' slinky bassline and booming kicks are a direct callback to "the mind i left behind" on albumone. Neat! Maps of Us is no mere retread, though. Don't worry if opener "Release" sounds a little plodding, because this album really starts with the auditory floatation tank of "Syrup" and never really wanes. Through the goopy layers of quivering bass, clean guitars, and vocals twisted and pitch-shifted into unrecognizability, it plays like an Antonymic from a glossy, icy future. I may like it a little more, even.
"Take a moment to pause/And remember/All the old things you had/And dismembered", c.layne sings halfway between reassuring and warning on midpoint "Sensors". It's in this little trio of songs, "Visitation", "Sensors", and "Gauze", that you find the brightest spots on the whole album. The vocal layering and harmonies, the unsteady rhythms, the lines about feral lives and feral needs—it's what he does best, perfectly balancing dark and menacing with just that touch of seductive pop to bring out the flavor. Maps of Us is a hugely nostalgic record for me, having accompanied me on many an early morning bus ride in high school. It's gentle enough to fall asleep to, but evocative enough to stick with you the rest of the day.
| Essential: | "Syrup", "Sensors", "Falls" |
|---|---|
| Quintessential: | "Illuminate" |
| Non-Essential: | "Release" |
| Rating: |  |
| Further listening: | Download from c.layne's Bandcamp |