A Place to Bury Strangers
Transfixiation

Transfixiation is the fourth album from A Place to Bury Strangers, or APTBS to friends. Ackermann and company are from New York and have become known for their intense live shows, even catching the attention of major media outlets such as the Washington Post, earning the label of ''loudest band in NY''. Transfixiation also marks the debut of Robi Gonzalez on drums, following Jay Space's departure from the group.
Like the overflowing waters of a river, their noise, shoegaze, wave sound spills over definitions and envelops.

Let's make it clear that Transfixiation comes after two abrasive gems like Worship (god, how I love Alone) and Exploding Head, which are superior, but despite this, it is an excellent album, certainly one to add to the best of 2015.

Yes, now I'm going to write down the songs I liked. Decided.

Straight takes us on an Industrial ride, a track straight from an assembly line that ultimately collapses on itself. We like it, it makes us shake our heads the entire time.
In Love High, the voice comes and goes, as if it were part of a different song.
Deeper is a kind of anguish placed there, I feel uneasy every time I listen to it, like someone is spying into my brain, into my most private or secret things, turning my drawers inside out. And yes, they are coming to get me, damn.
The speed and rock'n'roll of I'm so clean fit perfectly, with Ackermann's voice being slapped by constant gusts of guitars. Final sonic drizzle, no need for umbrellas. The buildup of Fill the void captivates me, another track that provokes undeniable pleasure to my senses.
They dismiss you with I will die, not exactly sweet as a title or farewell, a track that interrupts broadcasts with an increasingly disturbed sound. End.

Reaching the end, two thoughts cross my mind, two doubts that get kicked in my brain by APTBS. The first is that Transfixiation makes me think the ''loudest'' guys in NY with this record tried to straddle two worlds, on one hand, seeking new and greater ''likes'' and on the other, not wanting to ''betray'' the early fans. Something that's quite understandable with rising fame and at the fourth album.
Another reflection is why such music is never heard on the radio, what the hell kind of world.

A good album that, however, arrives after two beautiful portraits.