If I wasn’t sure I have an aversion to 1980s referentialism-cum-nostalgia before, then I’m damn sure of it after listening to Moaning’s new album, Uneasy Laughter, a half dozen times plus another half dozen for prepping my review. This is a very 80s record, like if Joy Division made new music in 2020 and drew influence from contemporary post-punk, except this isn’t Joy Division, or New Order, and that really sticks in my craw, I’m telling you.
I’m not really ready to dump all over this album; I think it’s for someone, just not for me, and I don’t necessarily want to call this abject shit music because I don’t really feel that’s the case. Instead it’s a case of the style rubbing me wrong. So I did my best to articulate that without scorching Moaning. Hopefully, I got there.
You can read the full review over at Paste Magazine.