Averkiou - The New Imperative 7”

It’s been roughly four years since Averkiou released their debut and lone LP Throwing Sparks. Since then there has been very little in the way of new material from the band, the only thing I can remember is a single released back in ‘09. Apologies if I missed something, although it kind of blows my mind that particular single is that old already. Apparently the band has undergone some changes during the time in between, losing a couple of members and adding a new one to the mix thus paring them down to a four piece. I’m assuming that’s slowed things a bit. When I heard about a new record coming out I kind of jumped the gun and thought it was going to be a follow up LP, but instead it turned out to be four new cuts for a single. Oh well, rather have something than nothing I guess.

I don’t know necessarily what qualifies as stoner rock down in Florida, but for whatever reason I occasionally see that dropped in when describing these guys. I’m not getting it, as Averkiou sound like pretty standard throwback shoegaze to me with maybe some slight Dino Jr. worship here and there, but more so on b-side “The Rabbit and the Lion” than anything else. Other than that, this doesn’t really advance things all too much, aside from being a bit more hook laden than your typical shoegaze fare. That’s pretty much where these guys separate themselves from the mass of similar bands out there, with a decent mixture of jangly pop and serene textures/melodies to get by on. Now maybe that they’ve got the lineup situation under control for the time being, a new LP can get done and out there. These guys shined on that format awhile back, I believe they can do it again.

Averkiou – Go Matsumoto! (stream)

Anyone interested in picking up the single can do so by hitting up Sound Study Records. Also, if you missed out on either their full-length Throwing Sparks or their previous single, you can grab those at a “name your own” price rate at their Bandcamp page.