Bruiser and Bicycle - Holy Red Wagon

“The second album from the Albany freak-folk group is vivid and dreamlike, revealing a meticulous attention to detail.” – Pitchfork (7.5)

“the inventively upbeat instrumentation backing the lead vocals feels like a distant cousin to the (Morning) Benders’ baroque-pop-by-way-of-jangle-pop compositions” – FLOOD

“An album of expanding, exploding layers, … the type of record the listener will hear new sounds within far into the future of repeated listens.” – Post-Trash (interview)

Holy Red Wagon is a world to get lost in. Across nine elastic tracks, meticulously channeled freak-folk influence twists its way into Bruiser and Bicycle’s progressive rock-skewed artpop.

Replete with rich imagery and burning affirmations for life, the Albany, NY group’s exploratory writing takes the form of grandiose song structures, call-and-response passages, and confrontations with the unfamiliar. Lead single “1000 Engines”, an explosive and frenetic introduction to Holy Red Wagon, lurches between genre spectrums on a dime, coalescing somewhere between jangle rock and experimental pop.

Flashes of psychedelia find home on Holy Red Wagon too, as heard in the various synths and atmospherics in the frenzied second single “Superdealer”, the first song written for the album. One of the shorter works on the record, the song about desire features an unforgettable, extended bridge that captures the pop aptitude of Bruiser and Bicycle, as well as the spirit of Holy Red Wagon itself.

While the chaos that jumps out from Holy Red Wagon seems at first listen to be its salient feature, it’s the contrasts and juxtapositions of style and sound that are its beating heart—ostensible chaos revealing more and more of its order with each successive listen.

“The video for “Superdealer” was inspired by various images and colors seen and felt while residing in the world of this song. Wearing a cloak, or veil puts one in a feeling of childlike wonder, as well as a sense of something archaic or timeless, both of which this song aims to create.” – Keegan Graziane, Bruiser and Bicycle