Ty Segall has never been one to do exactly what one might expect. Working within the boundaries of the garage rock universe, he's recorded wildly psychedelic solo albums that sound like they were made in a tin cup, turned his Freedom Band into a well-oiled rock & roll machine, and explored the outskirts of folk-rock and metal, sometimes all at once. No matter what he does, there is always a towering flame of inspiration at its core burning like a giant Olympic torch. In that respect, his 2021 album
Harmonizer isn't all that different from the work that's come before. In most other respects, it is a wild outlier that takes
Segall to places he hasn't been before. First off, the record is almost slick sounding. Built around high-tech drum machines, processed guitars, fat synths, and vocals that are recorded as clear as a bell, parts of the album almost sound like they could be played on mainstream rock radio. The songs jump from pounding metal excursions to tightly wound modern rock to synthy weirdness, each one ripping cleanly through the speakers with nary a ragged edge or stray shard of feedback. Take any track and let the guitars loose, add some unhinged drumming, do some howling instead of harmonizing, and almost every song would be vintage
Segall. Wrapped up tightly in slick modern clothes, they are something new. Definitely exciting for anyone willing to follow him out of the garage, and maybe a little bewildering for those who want to hear him crank out more of the same. No matter which camp listeners may find themselves in, it's hard to argue with the window-shaking power of tracks like the
Sabbath-with-synths "Pictures," which comes complete with harmonized guitar leads and a super-gnarly bass sound, or the warped outer-space glam of "Harmonizer." Even the songs that stray the furthest from what one might expect from
Segall show him flexing some new muscles. The doomy synth goth ballad "Ride" is proof he could compete with the myriad of bands who call that territory home, "Whisper" is a slow-strutting boogie rocker that sounds like
ZZ Top if they came from the desert instead of Texas, and "Feel Good," which is sung by his wife, Denée, comes across like a
Devo/
Blondie hybrid. Overall, it may seem like
Segall took a mad leap into the unknown with
Harmonizer, one that's sure to be polarizing. Luckily for him -- and anyone willing to accept change -- he nails the landing without a single wobble or hop. It may be a direction he follows further, or it could be a one-off; either way,
Harmonizer is an exciting and intriguing addition to his bursting-at-the-seams discography. ~ Tim Sendra