∆ Riding An Awesome Wave Of Hype

The latest British buzz band to get way too much praise way too soon is ∆ (aka alt-J; don't bother unless you have a Mac, I had to copy and paste it from Windows Character Map). Having just released their debut album An Awesome Wave at home in late May, ∆ has already had critical accolades lauded upon them and seen fans arrive in droves, foaming at the mouth. It's the same kind of overwhelming build-up that can only be manufactured by the Brits, and usually leads to the casual listener being underwhelmed.

An Awesome Wave is not the second coming of Muse. It's not as brilliantly haphazard and scatterbrained as you may have heard. It's certainly not a new benchmark in originality. It's Mumford and Sons with funkier beats crossed with Liars-ish rhythmic experiments that keep their arms inside the ride at all times. And, really, it's kind of modern hipster-centric; you need a Mac to type their name without effort, for starters. They've also gone out of their way to talk about their literacy; they've even penned a song influenced by Where The Wild Things Are because that's what you're supposed to do to prove you're smart (don't they know Metallica did it first?).

Is An Awesome Wave worth a listen? Absolutely; as far as debuts go, it's an interesting and engaging experience. Just make sure you're going in with realistic expectations and you're sure to take something positive from it. ∆ aren't genre-busting visionaries, but they are an exciting new band with intriguing possibilities.

An Awesome Wave gets a North American release September 18 via Canvasback.

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