A Vast Yet Driving New Single from Malibu Blackout

The latest release from Malibu Blackout may be their most progressive yet. The single boasts this storyline riddled with different characters, giving the aesthetic of a cinematic old western with tremolo-effected guitars and plenty of changes that blow you away when you first listen to the track.

The new song is called "Pay Your Tab", and lyrically it tells two different sides to a story, beautifully done with such inner thought being the dialogue. It's almost like you're listening to a narration of the storyline from the characters themselves, and I love this approach because it's so different and unique. You have to listen to the track a few times to pick up on everything happening lyrically.

This is no problem because the song is awesome. So, it starts with a cleaner sort of vibe, but you do get those spacious and vast, tumbleweed-riddled,  Western tales kind of feel from those guitars. The drums are alive. They're driving the track, but they're giving everything this forward-moving flow, and as it all happens, you have one guitar that's doing it sort of Dick Dale style surf feeling riff, while another one is just laying these spacious notes over that

Along with the drumming focusing on the toms and giving things this sort of pulsing vibe, it all starts to come to life.

The song unfolds a bit more, and the vocals become more intense as the rest of the song starts hitting a bit harder. Vocals start harmonizing, guitars are ringing out bigger, and everything starts to climb.

By the time the song hits that classic four-on-the-floor style beat, you have this octavized guitar, still affected with a sort of reverb giving it a distant tone, and the whole thing is a bit tripped out.

Now, if you're not familiar with Malibu Blackout, then I can tell you now, this is a great song to jump right in with.

The band does have a temperament for creating songs with that psychedelic underbelly and experimental overtone while still having a heavy drive at times. This track is actually a perfect example because soon enough, the song explodes into a heavier tone.

It starts really rocking out with heavier guitars and a fatter soundscape.

The drums are smashing, the vocals are belting, but everything still takes a melodic approach, along with heavy-handed and energized rock backbone.

It's cool because the entire song builds up to this huge climax. Instead of just hitting choruses, going back to verses, and a normal, standardized sort of arrangement, this song builds musically and vocally into one big climax and then settles back down a bit and sort of falls apart at the end.

The guitar work on this track I'm in particular, is outstanding. It's got so many great riffs, lead guitar sections, the spaciousness and ambience that it creates, and all of the guitars on this track shape the aesthetic of everything that you're hearing. They build the actual soundscape.

Again, you get this live performance energy coming from the track because it does pack a punch, and again, it's not just your standard formatting or arrangement. It's a bit more robust, it has such great builds of intensity, and it showcases how these guys can write songs that have a free-flow, in a sense.

They're not really following the rules. They're just doing their thing because it feels right, and it sounds awesome when they do that.

As I mentioned earlier, lyrically the song displays two different characters, and as the band themselves state, the lyrics create a juxtaposition of putting the feelings of a serial killer and the lead investigator side by side.

Such a cool concept and amazing way to lay it all out. It is a cinematic track indeed, and it's one that comes as I mentioned before, you should listen to it a few times over in a row so that you can really pick up on everything that's actually going on.

Plus, there are tons of amazing textures and layers happening throughout the song for you to soak in, along with these brilliant lyrics.

The whole track has a bit of a haunting undertone, and this is one of my favorite releases from the band to date.

Having said that, they have released a handful of songs this year already, and all of them bring something a little new to the table.

This is something I adore about Malibu Blackout as a whole.

I am hoping for an album, but for now, these singles will certainly do.

You should check this track out first, and then go through some of their recent releases because it's all amazing stuff. These guys blend desert, alternative,  indie, cinematic, pop, and garage rock all in one.

Don't just take my word for it, though. Check this out right now.

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