Chemical Peel

One of my favorite parts of listening to and reviewing indie music is the chance to be genuinely surprised. It’s something that almost never happens when I listen to the radio. The formulaic nature of popular music results in unsurprisingly predictable songs. Dig just beneath the surface, though, and you'll find artists willing to take creative risks, like Liam Colbert, the creative force behind Toronto-based psychedelic rock band Rise Carmine. Colbert describes the band's debut album, Under the Red Light, as "a celebration of things that take place in the shadows," and its gritty, atmospheric sound fully embraces that vision.

My first indication that "Chemical Peel" was something special came early in the opening verse. An unexpected chord progression immediately caught my attention. With nothing but acoustic guitar and vocals at first, there's nowhere for those dissonant chords to hide, and they grew on me as the song progressed. Bathed in pretty heavy reverb, the vocals paint the picture of an unexpected encounter with a past lover. The song's most evocative moment arrives in the second verse: "Have you buffed out your lines? 'Cause I can't recognize the poems in your skin, the ones that I carved in." I love the imagery here. Obviously this person has moved on, having shed the marks of a shared past, while the narrator seemingly remains stuck.

Drums and bass add weight without disrupting the hypnotic simplicity of the acoustic guitar, which continues to anchor the track. The chorus blends in so seamlessly that it's easy to miss the transition. "The river runs clean, the chemical peel nestles in my lungs. What did you mean when you said to me it's temporary?" There's something very comforting about the way the sustained vocal melodies interact with the guitar chords that shift harmonically while retaining common tones. It’s hard to describe, but it makes me want to kick my feet up and soak it in.

A thick, bluesy guitar riff ushers in the outro, delivering one final surprise before the song ends. It's a really impactful passage that is reminiscent of the grungey swagger of '90s bands like Pearl Jam. The crashing drums, punchy guitar, and echoing vocals all add up to create a dreamlike haze that helps "Chemical Peel" leave its musical residue behind long after the song ends.