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Brooklyn-based Book/Spirit play like a mashup of big rock motifs. It’s full-throated rock in the vein of Kings of Leon, but with up-tempo hooks like the Killers and Hot Hot Heat, all beneath a canopy of swarming shoegaze guitars. It’s big city music stitching together a range of influences into a steady, sturdy banquet of accomplished indie rock.

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For the first half of Easements, the group focuses almost solely on mood and repetition. Each of the first four songs pummel through their respective progression – singular – using dynamics and shifting instrumentation to differentiate between verses and choruses. Many songs do use this songwriting technique, from "Free Falling" to “Espresso," but four songs in a row has the unfortunate effect of limiting each song’s impact. While all the progressions work in service of creating memorable and transportive moments, the redundancy of the parts starts to draw attention to itself, rather than the intended effect of carrying the listener away. The second half of the record benefits from more dynamic songwriting, and provides a glimpse of the potential Book/Spirit might accomplish in future releases.

 

Despite the repetitive nature of the first four songs, every song has a lot going for it. Delicate guitarwork fights for air amid the squall toward the end of opener “Crumb,” While the poppier impulses of “Velocity” immediately reveal the band’s range. “Miami” softens it up, sounding like a hungover Luna, which is closed out by an excellently squelchy guitar solo. “Meant to Be” comes out kicking with a smart guitar hook that fits unexpectedly over a minor key progression. As the song devolves into a bridge that loosens up the tempo, it feels like the band is straining to find new ground withing their single-progression approach. 

 

“Wintermute,” the fifth song on the album, finally introduces a complementary progression for the chorus. This opens the song up to a dynamic and memorable melody. “Head” is an introspective downtempo dirge that gets a lift from some guest backing vocals. The song has great instincts and dynamics, but in this case the recording lacks the punch the song seems to ask for. Rather than soaring, the thin cymbals and dead snare of the drum sounds limit it to chugging along steadily. Overall the recording does a fine job of hinting at professional rock sounds while retaining a DIY grit. It’s an in-your-face mix that doesn’t sacrifice fidelity. Layered harmonies and reverb help soften the otherwise rock-forward singing – bravado isn’t typical for shoegaze, and it’s an interesting juxtaposition that Book/Spirit works in their favor.

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The final two songs, “Haunt You” and “Cast No Light,” might be the best examples of what Book/Spirit has to offer. Muscular indie rock hooks, peppy tempos, exciting dynamic range, all layered over washy distorted guitars, with sustained passages of the band letting loose. When the instruments breath and stretch and expand, while maintaining the band’s overall mode, it’s both impressive and enjoyable.