Preoccupations Find a Mantra in “Anxiety”

A song by Preoccupations called “Anxiety” is kind of like a song by Beach House called “Majesty“ or a song by Vampire Weekend called “Whimsy”—a means of pinpointing the essence of a band in a single word, and then inconspicuously sliding it into the tracklist. It feels particularly on-the-nose for the Calgary quartet—formerly known as Viet Cong, featuring ex-members of Women—whose music is often carried by an ominous energy, constantly on the edge of a breakdown but still coherent enough to describe all the symptoms.

While far from a feel-good summer jam,  “Anxiety” is a little closer to the hazy, lo-fi meditations of 2010′s Public Strain than the creeping nausea of 2015′s Viet Cong. The song’s insistently slow, steady rhythm and its dramatic, gothy atmospherics help give Matt Flegel’s vocals a “hear ye, hear ye” sad-bastard stateliness. “With a sense of urgency and unease,” he begins, as if instructing his bandmates at rehearsal. But as it progresses, “Anxiety” is surprisingly relaxed and well-adjusted. “I’m not here purely for the sake of breathing,” he vows, “I am wide awake.” And just like that, Preoccupations have written their own mantra.

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