Jody Smith launched the
Black Nash moniker during a five-year stint in the U.S. military, occasionally releasing low-key self-recorded tracks under the name. When he completed his service in 2019, Smith's immediate goals were to reintegrate into civilian life and get some kind of stable nine-to-five job. Instead, he found himself struggling to reacclimate, and matters weren't helped by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Smith found himself in a place of deep isolation and decided to put all his energy into crafting a proper debut full-length for
Black Nash. Ironically, the feelings of alienation and displacement that surrounded him while the album was being made barely come through in its ten songs. Instead of paranoia or angst, the record glows with excitement and a weird warmth. The combination of shy songcraft and woozy indie R&B undertones that was finding its legs on earlier
Black Nash recordings congeals here. Songs like "4 I.O.," with its wobbly groove, or the breathy softness of "No Idea" show off Smith's proclivity for smooth, soul-informed songs, melding the daydreamy funk of
Unknown Mortal Orchestra's danciest moments with the damaged, lo-fi production of artists like
Homeshake or
Cleaners from Venus. Smith doesn't stay in one mode for long, though, even within the same song. Album standout "Love Underwater" begins as a sunny acoustic tune and grows increasingly psychedelic as surreal lyrics about dolphins and the C.I.A. and layers of wild guitar overdubs or distorted drums enter the mix. Smith's songwriting style nods to insular, curious talents like
Emmit Rhodes or
Alex Chilton, but he always dismantles his songs before they get too easily digestible. Both "Burn My Body Down" and "On the Line" present themselves as melodic, slightly cracked power pop, but stabs of rowdy, anxious guitar or demonic vocal inflections always disrupt things before long. At times
Black Nash feels like
George Harrison's
All Things Must Pass being reinterpreted by
Ween. At no point does the album overtly address any of the issues Smith faced when he left the Army, but with subtlety and strangeness,
Black Nash more generally reflects the scattered mindset of someone who's struggling every day but trying their best. Catchy rockers like "Minute of Rage" or the breezy "Zodiac" are upbeat and positive, but listening closer reveals lyrics confronting confusion with an offbeat candor. Smith's sturdily built songs are at constant odds with his impulses to unravel them, and the end result is an album of instantly enjoyable modern classics characterized by
Black Nash's unique breed of friendly chaos. ~ Fred Thomas