Astrophagus - “For Boating”
I am a scooterist and a cyclist, and I have friends who are Derby girls. As a result, I have grown to know the significance of a truly beautiful bruise. And apparently, so have the boys in one of my very favorite local bands, Astrophagus. Their most recent album, “For Boating,” is a tribute to the beauty that can be found in what hurts, what lingers, what causes damage. And moreover, it is also a collection of songs that extol the highs and lows of healing from such pain.
Foregoing their past electronic experimentation for synth that slightly flavors, rather than dominates, their music, “For Boating” brings stronger elements of focus and solidity to the band’s sound. But what is comforting is that the band loses none of their eccentricities in the maturation process. Song titles taken from Mitch Hedberg sketches, theremin-esque synthesizer effects and emotionally-charged crescendos all make appearances on the album.
There is no mistake that this is from the same guys who used to fashion instruments from auto parts in their previous incarnation as The Moths. But there is such a great leap between “Causalite” and “For Boating,” This is a band that has had a bit of time to find the beauty in new hurts, and the poetry in the healing process. This is not truly a sad album, but a hopeful one. There is a humor to “For Boating,” a sweetness, a resolve to try again no matter what the cost. And as with the case with any good injury, physical or emotional, there is that element of showing-off, of proving what you’ve been through and what you can survive.