Raspberry Moon
*Raspberry Moon* begins exactly how you’d expect a Hotline TNT album to begin: with another melancholic missive from singer/guitarist Will Anderson wrapped in candy-coated distortion. But just when you think the opening “Was I Wrong?” is about to fade into the fuzz, it takes an unexpected detour into an extended, synth-washed ambient fadeout that goes on for so long, it earns its own track-title distinction (“Transition Lens”). And while that left turn doesn’t exactly portend Hotline TNT taking a *Kid A*-sized leap into the electronic unknown, it is nonetheless emblematic of a band in the midst of an exciting evolutionary phase. *Raspberry Moon* marks the first time Anderson has recorded with his touring band, and you instantly sense the difference in both density and depth on “The Scene,” a psychedelic sludgefeast that harkens back to Dinosaur Jr.’s SST era. But the sonic upgrade is as much about enhancing nuance as amplifying noise: When they’re not consistently striking the shoegaze/power-pop sweet spot on Teenage Fanclub flashbacks like “Letter to Heaven” and “Candle,” Hotline TNT bring graceful acoustic textures to the fore on “Dance the Night Away” and “Lawnmower,” putting the focus squarely on Anderson’s gleaming melodies. And with the rousing “na na na na” hook of “Julia’s War,” Anderson confirms his former DIY project is ready to conquer festival stages.
On their first LP written as a full band, the New York shoegazers swing for the rafters. It’s their most polished and ambitious album yet, wielding a super-sized sound fit for super-sized feelings.
Raspberry Moon wrestles Hotline TNT's chaos into high-octane, precise bursts.
'Raspberry Moon' is proof that things often end up better with some help from your friends. The resulting material accounts for Hotline TNT's most startlingly optimistic, accessible, gritty, and warm music to date.
On their latest album, a newly collaborative approach is a good look on the NYC outfit.
Perhaps more thought-provoking than their explosive moniker might suggest, the new album ‘Rasberry Moon’ from New York’s Hotline TNT is a powerful
Raspberry Moon by Hotline TNT album review by Leslie Ken Chu for Northern Transmissions. The LP drops on June 20th via Third Man Records
Will Anderson opens up on the NYC group’s third album, revealing an expansive articulacy to his take on 90s indie-rock