Mythless ‘Patience Hell’

Words by Russell Carstens

On Patience Hell, Jason Bartell (ex-Fang Island) has created an original and exciting vision. It’s a frantic jigsaw puzzle of indie rock through a semi-broken-8-bit lens (plus a hyperactive octopus on drums).

Bartell’s intention was to be a maximalist, building an “overwhelming snowball of sound” through layering. This EP’s sound doesn’t bulldoze you in the way My Bloody Valentine does with layering, but rather it creates a complex, ever-changing emotional kaleidoscope. In spots where the tension never quite breaks, things can feel a little anticlimactic, but this is delightful postmodern indie psychedelia.

At times, there are even hints of the same vibe that John Frusciante reaches on his truly far-out but wholly sincere 2012 EP Letur-Lefr. An accomplishment indeed. Patience Hell is loads of fun, and there’s a contagious, unapologetic optimism present. Repeated listens will no doubt provide a serious return on investment.