It is no surprise that Wayward Fire has been looping through my iPod over the past few days, as I am huge fan of the recent resurgence of lyrically driven electronic music. Multi-instrumentalist producer Kamtin Mohager (The Chain Gang of 1974) does an absolutely fantastic job of leading the listener on an emotional journey throughout this album by combining electronic elements with punk sounds. Mohager’s influence from The Jesus and Mary Chain and Primal Scream are heavily heard all over the tracks on this album.

The lyrics are perfectly paired up with the music, adding even more meaning to the already deep words that are being sung. There are points in the album where thinking about the instrumentation is an afterthought as I automatically enter a head-bobbing trance.  I had to play the track again.  Although it felt good, I had no way to describe what had happened. With today being the first day of summer, I am certain that this will be an album that many will hold a close relationship to with the summer of 2011, long after 2011 has passed.

Opening the album up is the track “Stop”, which begins with an attention grabbing drum machine and later introduces a funky bass line and acoustic guitar. Though Mohager’s lyrics are fresh, they seem as though they have been taken from different era. The synth buildup during the last half of the song is uplifting and enters into a fitting exit. “Hold On” is a danceable track that features an infectious chorus while taking the listener on a smooth eight-minute trip. When the chorus first comes on, which is over three minutes into the song, it is difficult not to start the song over again in an attempt to relive the initial experience.

An ever-rare feat, Mohager delivers a solid sixty minutes of music on this album. On “Teenagers”, it is easy to hear the resemblance to The Jesus and Mary Chain. The lyrics are strong, the drumbeat is light and this song has an easygoing electric guitar riff to close. Track nine on the album, “Ethical Drugs”, is a perfectly built song that starts out with some heavy drum machine action and dives headfirst into Mohager’s dark and powerful lyrics. Describing this album as a single piece is difficult, but each individual track is extremely well constructed and is a taste of the great things to come for The Chain Gang of 1974.

Pick up the album now at Amazon or on iTunes.

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Catch The Chain Gang of 1974 with Washed Out at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco on July 9.