Habits' Newest Album Arrives With "Unselves in Arrival"

Originally published 02/25/14:

Electronica today has become the norm in music, especially pop. It’s not uncommon to turn on

the radio and hear dubstep or techno. But with that, it invites more artists to join the fray with their unique brands of music. Out of Los Angeles, “Habits” is a band that produces a hybrid of electronic and punk music of sorts. Habits is made up of Dustin Krapes as the lead-singer, Dithy Ramb on drums, and Gabriel Armenta on bass guitar. Their album, “Unselves in Arrival,” features an abundance of electronic sounds combined with hard-rock beats that, together, provide an interesting quality.

In addition to the drum and guitar work, a majority of the album is made up of electronic

noises like synthesizers, beeps, and other sounds that one would likely hear from the NES. The first track, “Splendor of the Panic,” greets the listener with robotic whop sounds followed by a drum beat similar to the opening from the “Green Day” song, “Longview.” This song, combined with the mechanized guitar riffs that follow gives “Splendor of the Panic” a sound that kind of resembles industrial-rock, which makes it stand out from the rest of the album that consists mostly of computerized sounds.

Indeed, many tracks here have noises that sound as if they were ripped straight out of a laboratory. “Haacksaw,” the fourth track, begins like a Stockhausen piece with mechanized samples. All through the song there are swooping notes along with other notes that contrast one another to give it a disorganized sound. Other tracks like “Snkchrmr” and “Toymakr” lack a distinctive melody which contributes to the distorted quality that gives a weird feeling. Let me put it this way: these are the kind of songs you hear when you are on drugs.

As stated before, some sounds used here could have come from the NES. Matter of fact, when I listen to some of these tracks, it makes me want to break out my NES and go insane trying to get one of cartridges to play, but I digress. One such song is track five, “Just a Ride,” which begins with a buzzing noise then what sounds like an 8-bit organ. There is also an orbiting whistling effect that came straight out of space. Another track that reminds me of gaming is “All the Figures,” that begins with catchy percussion, along with a “bloop” sound and other 8-bit sounds. The song sounds like it could be a part of a futuristic level in a retro game. The computerized sounds in most of the songs along with the underlying punk theme are utilized very well and give a sense of 90s nostalgia.

In a time where electronica is growing in the music world, “Unselves in Arrival” holds its own as a punk/electronic album. With all the different sounds used, “Habits” develops an intriguing style that can appeal to the electronic music fan and even the non-fan. “Unselves in Arrival” is available now for purchase digitally, on CD, and cassette tape.