| Flying Machines are that rare breed: A fresh-sounding New York band whose smarts and cleverness don’t interfere with their capital ‘R’ rock. A lineup whose gifted singer-keyboardist is influenced by Ben Folds and Freddy Mercury, while the Zeppelin-loving, Fender-playing guitarist is unafraid to go to 11…and shred on solos. They’re anchored by a “hyper-creative” rhythm section who keep Flying Machines from soaring out of the stratosphere.
On their self-titled debut for Meteor 17/EMI, Flying Machines’ timeless, classic-sounding modern rock is musically precocious, but never precious. As band co-founder John Wlaysewski notes, “We mesh my abrasive rock guitar and William’s beautiful singer-songwritery thing. He brings the beauty, I bring the rock. We’re not a garage band, and but we always try to keep a little of that mentality so we don’t pick things apart to the nth degree. Like all my guitars on the album were done in one take.”
The result is a kinetic record that encompasses the theatrical, surreal and dramatic. From the first single, the irresistible, irrepressible pop gem “On A Whim” to the pure emotion of the carefully crafted “I Don’t remember Why” to the soaring melody and guitar lines of “Hopelessly Alone,” Flying Machines are that rare rock band who are at once taut, dynamic and sublime. |
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