Emeralds’ self-titled album is touted as kraut- and/or synthesizer rock, though I’d say there’s more of a old-school ambient thing going on here. Many of the warbling, sustained backdrop synthesizer tones on Emeralds are extremely reminiscent of any number of ‘70s space education programs on PBS or BBC. It’s a little drug hazy, a little unconscious tripping out. Digging even further, there’s a touch of Dr. Who (the one starring Tom Baker) in there. Sadly, that’s about as engaging as this album gets.

Emeralds’ relaxed and complaisant atmospherics, such as the first 4:50 of “Passing Away,” make this music more absorbent than radiant. It soaks in the mood and mentality of different activities rather than asserting its own emotional palette. For example, “Geode” took on a very ominous, frightful tone while I was reading a tale of deceit and murder, a tonality that disappeared while watching baseball games or paying bills. This lends a musical impotence to the album, as it doesn’t proclaim a definitive personality or presence for itself.

A very clear manifestation of this problem lies in the expectations that arise while listening. On “Overboard (Off the Deep End),” the entire song seems like an expectant lead-up to the climactic explosion of a Zombi tune. I keep waiting for crazy drums to come bombing in, but they don’t. This again, gives the feeling of musical impotence. Though, on the other hand, this could be a good thing, as it is rare that music can transubstantiate this much with so few instruments and notes, particularly in the ambient realm. It may sound like I’m putting a lot of window dressing on saying “this album is boring,” but one would be quite wrong to assume that. Emeralds is not exceptionally interesting, yet neither is it a “throw-away” record.

Another area where Emeralds falls short is the refusal to carry anything old or retro into the present. Whereas many of the old analog synth sounds that hark back to the ‘70s share a timbre with those used by Boards of Canada, Emeralds does nothing to surround those sounds with fresh environments (beats, for example). Instead, they just hold certain drones and overlap significant layers of arpeggios over the top. I dare not demand that each artist completely reinvent a genre or style every time they go into the studio, but putting at least some stamp of individuality on the music would be nice. This album sounds like only a part of an imagined whole, which may be a big reason for its overall lack of punch.

-Gabriel Bogart