Distractions plays an intense style of pop that’s dark and brooding. Amidst ringing guitars and synths is front-man Tom Owens’ deep tenor vocals. They would seem to dominate Dark Green Sea, but they do not; instead they complement and occasionally contrast with the instrumentation that accompany them. If anything, Distractions’ sound is a nod to Scott Walker’s weirdness, with the epic greatness of Phil Spectre’s early work, all while enclosing it in an 80s post-punk sound.
Dark Green Sea is all kinds of good, in the most unique of ways, from the pleasant quietude of “Baby Steps” to the fantastic pop of “All Night”. This eight-song LP is packed with interesting, dreamy pop melodies, emphatic in the most bizarre of ways, and strange to its very core. That’s not to say it lacks merit — it most certainly does not. Dark Green Sea is among the most unsettling endearing albums I have ever heard. And that makes it a completely brilliant work of art.
