Throwing their hat into the ring with party math greats like Aiming For Enrike, Bicurious and Battles with a hearty dose of electronic noise, Bristol based duo Socks And Ballerinas take their complex beats and live looped guitars and synths and inject them with a playful, danceable spirit. Where other bands approach technical, progressive music with an almost clinical, scientific accuracy Socks And Ballerinas experiment with an almost childlike whimsy on A Bit Jumpy! in a way that’s impossible to listen to without losing yourself in their wacky sound.
The album’s introductory track ‘Vanta Black’ hits like a brick wall, immediately throwing the listener into the deep end of Socks And Ballerinas’ mind-bending sound. Guitarist, bassist and synth player Leonardo Calamati acts as the band’s neurological centre, live looping parts individually to create a rich sonic texture while drummer Katalin Helfenbein provides driving beats which ground the swirling guitar and synth parts. ‘Vanta Black’ acts as a fantastic introduction to the duo’s world with whirling, choppy electronic textures devolving into a cacophony of euphoric, danceable noise. From the outset Socks And Ballerinas make a strong impression, sounding much more developed than a two-piece should have any right to.
While A Bit Jumpy! does make a very impactful first impression, a few of the songs fall into the trap of self-indulgent noodling making the experience a little flabbier than necessary. Most of the album’s nine tracks stay firmly in their lane, keeping well under the four minute mark for a swift hit of electronic math, however, ‘Muscle Monsters’ clocking in at almost six and a half minutes outstays its welcome a little, losing a lot of the punch that makes the rest of the duo’s work interesting and the almost five minute closing track ‘The End Of Fiona’ slows down the pace to a steady, melancholy thump in a way that lurches the momentum of the album to a halt for a less than satisfying ending. Socks And Ballerinas shine when their songs have an end goal, speedrunning through a maze of intertwining instruments and tight, intricate beats, when they deviate from this formula the outcome is often less electrifying.
One of the highlights of the album is the track ‘Leak’, with some curveball sounds that slot elegantly into Socks And Ballerinas existing sound. Building the song’s sound around a soft, lo-fi, dungeon-synth style synthesiser line, ‘Leak’ starts slowly before hitting the listener with a disjointed guitar riff and rapid, syncopated drum hits over the top of this more delicate lead line then evolving into an uneven wave of loose, dancefloor-ready beats. This bait-and-switch is one of the album’s most impactful moments, preparing the listener for subtle ambience then smacking them over the head with one of Socks And Ballerinas’ wildest, most energetic tracks yet.
While the final track of A Bit Jumpy! takes Socks And Ballerinas in a totally new direction, the two preceding songs ‘Chemical’ and ‘200ml’ distil the project down into a tight, immersive experience. The former ‘Chemical’ flaunts Calamati’s live-looping abilities with a non-stop barrage of synths and guitars weaving into a rich tapestry of sound backed by Helfenbein’s off-kilter beats. ‘200ml’ leans in a more atmospheric direction, building up from an initial synth texture to an omnipresent, all-encompassing tsunami of sound built from overlapping keyboard and guitar lines with a drum line that steadily builds in intensity before the whole track dissipates in an instant. Both of these tracks show off Socks And Ballerinas’ ability to experiment in a way that works for them, using their boundaries as a way to keep their wilder ideas grounded and accessible instead of flying too far off the rails.
Despite some bumpy moments, A Bit Jumpy! manages to provide a uniquely bonkers experience for fans of off-the-wall, math rock inspired progressive beats. While a little short of a jewel in progressive music’s crown, Socks And Ballerinas’ best work still shines bright on their sophomore album.