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Our recurring column Track by Track sees artists taking readers through each song on their newest release. In this edition, Robber Robber dive into their new album, Two Wheels Move the Soul.
For their sophomore effort, Burlington indie rockers Robber Robber wanted to get a little weird with it, maybe even a little uncomfortable. Their promising 2024 debut, Wild Guess, had established the band’s knack for compelling, combustible soundscapes and off-kilter, hypnotic grooves. Now, on Two Wheels Move the Soul, the band fully leans into their most instinctual impulses, resulting in one of the most impressive indie albums of the year so far.
“We tried to challenge ourselves and make songs that excite us, often starting with ideas that push our comfort zones,” the band tells Consequence. “When making decisions, we try to steer towards things that make us laugh (out of humor or joy) or make us uncomfortable or make us feel something as opposed to just checking some sort of other box that we’ve imposed on ourselves.”
That outlook was initially previewed via a handful of killer singles, manifesting in the saturated wake-up call that is the opening title track, the ever-mutating instrumental and detached vocals of “Watch for Infection,” and the moody, melodic, methodical “Pieces.” Deeper album cuts only serve to prove that the formula has yet to be exhausted, with tunes like “Avalanche Sound Effect” or “It’s Perfect Out Here in the Sun” being every bit as creative and ear-grabbing.
“We’re trying not to force our songs to be things they aren’t,” say Robber Robber, “and when we’re feeling stuck, we try to lean further into what the song seems to want us to do rather than stray further away.”
Two Wheels Move the Soul, for all of its controlled chaos and sonic language that’s “defined by a couple pieces of extremely cheap gear that [Robber Robber] value highly,” manages to hold itself together with a warped, unique internal logic. Some tracks might pummel you with repetition and distorted tones, others may revel in contradiction, and at least one originates from a structural idea that simply made the band laugh (keep reading for more on that). And yet, they all contribute to the record’s overall attitude and impact. They’re all wheels, if you will, moving the soul of Robber Robber — just, in this case, there’s 11 wheels, but who’s counting?
Stream Robber Robber’s Two Wheels Move the Soul below, and scroll on for the band’s full Track by Track breakdown of the LP. You can also pick up a copy of Two Wheels Move the Soul on vinyl here.
English (US) · 