Major Arcana
Recorded and mixed by Justin Pizzoferrato at Sonelab, Easthampton, MA Mastered by Carl Saff, Chicago, IL Artwork by Sadie Dupuis July Was Hot Music (c) 2013 Carpark Records CAK97 Get IRL 12", cassette or CD here: store.carparkrecords.com/products/514163-cak97-speedy-ortiz-major-arcana
On their proper debut, Speedy Ortiz join a small club of young indie rock bands writing lyrics that are actually worth poring over, but the charms here extend beyond frontwoman Sadie Dupuis' clever and biting wordplay. The 1990s-indebted guitar crunch and quaking rhythms are a perfect match for her dark wit.
Major Arcana, the first full-length from Massachusetts indie-rock outfit Speedy Ortiz, proudly bears its influences—the clean guitars of Liz Phair, the dirty ones of Sonic Youth and Pavement—but dwelling on those touchstones distracts from the record’s fervent drive to unsettle and have fun in novel ways.