Los Angeles-based artist Glass Canyon recalls the nostalgic vibrancy of “a racing game soundtrack,” on the riveting album The System Has Suffered a Catastrophic Failure, released in 2022. A fully immersive electronic sound takes hold, ranging from chopped-up intensity to eerie synth-laden haunts.
“That Is Correct” opens the album with a dynamic sense of intrigue, moving from print-like effects into nocturnal synth envelopments and pulsing drum/bass maneuvers. Throbbing synths and dexterous percussion embrace past the one-minute turn, presenting a rapid pace befitting of the aforementioned racing-oriented hecticness — fit for rapid movements as neon lights whir by as the vehicle shifts into another gear.
Highlights are numerous throughout the album, possessing a variety of personalities. “Roach Racer” is especially magnetic in its traversal from late-night synth intrigue into amped-up vocal snippets; the sound of crashing signals the entry from one tonal arena into another, building into a second half with alluring synth arps. Elsewhere, a take on The Knife’s “Still Light” showcases a spacey eeriness, while “Amid Fleeting Cogency” stirs in its evolution from static-y dreaminess into a hard-rocking, distortion-friendly vigor. The System Has Suffered a Catastrophic Failure is a thoroughly impressive album from Glass Canyon.
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“Roach Racer” is also featured in the genre-based, best-of Spotify compilation Emerging Indie Electronic. Stream the playlist below:
We discovered this release via MusoSoup, as part of the artist’s promotional campaign.
