A visceral and creative endeavor that exudes with charm, ambition, and talent, Fundamental Shift’s latest studio album is an expansive masterwork. Clocking in at just over an hour, If Seven Was a Number is a piece of work that displays the immense musical chemistry that the Andrew duo possesses. An immediately gripping collection of crisply written tunes.
Based in Adelaide, Australia, Fundamental Shift is a musical vehicle birthed to convey the ideas of its founders Andrew Peter Sunter Muecke and Andrew Allan Rasheed. Together, the duo’s music is -as mentioned earlier- visceral. An enriching journey based on nuanced instrumental journeys that are tightly performed then neatly packed together into ambitious songs with raw and attractive instrumentals and provocative, smart lyrics.
A generous listen that rewards multiple listens, the music on the album crosses genre boundaries, hopping between experimental, progressive, and alternative rock, with psychedelic and stoner elements being a mainstay in this deeply whimsical and philosophical listen that Fundamental Shift have crafted. ‘The Crux of Potential’ is the album’s first grandiose piece of work, in runtime and in ambition. After the conventional and catchy psychedelia of the starter ‘Incandescent Grace’, which does a great job introducing the listeners to the group’s sound, organic grooves, and liquid vocal flow, and the ambient, Slowdive-like sophomore cut ‘You Know Better Know’, which would gladly call Pygmalion home, a cut that segues rather elegantly into the song in question, ‘The Crux of Potential’ starts. A lengthy cut with a wealth of musical and arrangement ideas, going from classic rock tinges, to psychedelic ones, to far eastern handpan melodies and syncopated rhythms, ‘The Crux of Potential’ is an engaging listen gorgeously dreamt up by the duo.
Rock returns either a twist on the next cut. ‘I Really Should Do More Dishes’ its sweet words, whimsical and out-there, but grounded and heartfelt, and its inventive guitar motif based on a challenging reverse delay effect, this song is another effortless shapeshifter that utilizes warm and crooning strings to keep everything together. Upbeat, intelligent, and interesting. The drumming mayhem joined by manic vocals on ‘Just These Crumbs’ helps create one of the album’s most compelling and outstanding musical atmospheres. Fantastic guitar work and terrific song building, modal licks and mysterious melodies, ‘Just These Crumbs’ is a wonderful, eerie, and gorgeous listen.
The expansive ambience on ‘Broken From the Inside’ makes it another cut on the album with no matches. Led by the soulful and lo-fi vocal croons and harmonies, backed by pads and a few instrumental flairs, this cut reminded me of the work of legendary Scottish band The Blue Nile, if it were on steroids for a more experimental edge. The ambience is then abruptly interrupted by the groovy ‘Pack for Mars’ which sounds exactly like its title suggests. A terrifically exciting adventure to an unknown, frightful destination. With its crystal clear groove and shimmering pads, its easy-to-follow chords and the preached vocals which sounds exactly like a higher register Nick Cave, ‘Pack for Mars’ is another effortless shapeshifter exquisite listen that is easily among the best on If Seven Was a Number.
‘Phantasmagoria’ follows. After one the album’s most experimental and involved intros, the song introduces Bowie-esque vocal cues, Flea inspired bass and steady grooves alongside borderline-rapped vocals. A song that sounds like RHCP on a psychedelic trip, ‘Phantasmagoria’ is an infinitely memorable listen with its funereal trumpets and bone chilling intro and outro, wrapping some of the album’s nicest and tightest grooves.
The swirling and groaning pads on ‘From the Dream to Here’ offer a stark point of respite at the penultimate spot on the record. A rather serene and cozy intro not devoid of its weirdness and off-kilter charm, the song features a groovy later half that’s become customary at this point on the record. The song’s latter half is sludgy and slowly-paced, with layers of syrupy pads flowing like sticky molasses all over the arrangement. The album’s finale, the beastly 13-minute long opera ‘From the Dream to Here’ sounds like an actual final boss level of sorts. Featuring instrumental highlights met at various points earlier in the record, ambience, eerie handpans, charismatic preaching, whirring ethnic drones, and of course, a solid and reassuring groove in the latter half. A modal and open ended piece that bookends the band’s rather ambitious work on the album, ‘From the Dream to Here’ is like a greatest hits record all on its own.
This album sounds like if Pink Floyd sounded nothing like Pink Floyd. With its expansive atmospheric song building and focus on organic instrumentation, ‘If Seven Was a Number’ is an arresting listen with an endlessly ethereal feel that’s unlike anything else. Fundamental Shit are a talented duo with a sound that stands out and a songwriting talent that kept my ears and senses glued to this rewarding 1-hour listen.
