With a name like Baths, I felt like I needed to gain an insight into the work of Will Wiesenfeld, the enigma behind this latest album. My expectations were raised after listening to Cerulean (2010), only to be put down by Baths’ new release, Obsidian. I seem to be immune to the supposed charms that his latest album has been generating of late, but rest assured, my hesitation comes not without good reason.

Obscurity after obscurity, Wiesenfeld’s work here feels like a cheap Radiohead spin-off, and not even nearly as good. The first track ‘Worsening’ didn’t quite cut it; if someone had replaced the track with the wavering sounds of corrugated iron being slapped on a bit of plaster over and over again I honestly would not have noticed. I can’t say that it’s any better than the emo bands I used to listen to as an angst ridden fourteen year old. I blame it on the tinny sound effects which just back up the notion that too many cooks spoil the broth.

Sure, Obsidian afforded some cheap thrills with the deadbeat yet punchy ‘Miasma Sky’, but can otherwise be described as generic and flat-out noise. I wouldn’t be cruel enough to claim that it’s “bad”, but mediocre seems a fair enough label. “Cute” might be another colourful adjective to use in conjunction with Obsidian, but I can’t quite bring myself to it. The album is so discordant, I can’t decide whether it is vying for the title of christmas number one or whiniest pop album ever made. Either way, it didn’t quite play to my tune. Unfortunately Obsidian carries none of the edginess that its title suggests, and that much of the hype surrounding it has nodded to.

This is the type of thing my friends from back home would describe as animatronic-toaster-orgasm noise. Comparable to Mew, Special Benny, and the less obscure Radiohead in some ways, Baths could be your sort of thing but it’s very much an acquired taste. I’ll stick to toasters, thanks.