Nashville – Born out of the minds of Joshua Rawlings, Dylan Wayman, Stephan Gubanov, and Sebastian “Seabass” Barnum in 2012, New Wave Rebellion is more than thrilled to announce that their first album, Transmogrification, was released on March 31st. The title track off the album just happens to be the introductory song – and it is definitely a fascinating piece of sound. It’s as if the band chose to sample the audio out of a science fiction movie involving robots taking over the planet. ‘Transmogrification’ is a compilation of any and all possible technological sounds from the 1990s. Computer turning on? You got it. Nintendo? Definitely. Phone lines crossed? Oh yeah.

The definition of “transmogrification” or “transmogrify” by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary is “to change or alter greatly and often with grotesque or humorous effect.” New Wave Rebellion was right to name their album after this fascinatingly and sadly underused word. Self-described as “sex rock”, this band takes music to an interestingly new level by truly defining the word for which the album is named.

The first vocal portion of the album comes in the second song, “That’s the Ticket”. The voice seems to be commanding something sinister. At the very least, what is decipherable is something about outer space…perhaps the robots that seem to infiltrate the previous song are finally invading Earth. Either way, it’s a sort of musical call to arms that has listeners intrigued.

The reason Transmogrification is so excellently titled is because throughout the songs, New Wave Rebellion interjects such sharp turns in terms of musical styles that they have in fact created a new musical method. Some lyrics are rapped out or spoken, like in “Yes Sir”, the seventh album on the track. Musically New Wave Rebellion seems to take on a Rage Against the Machine sort of vibe: harsh guitars that assault your eardrums, spoken/rapped out lyrics, overall mutinous sound.

Then, living up to their name, New Wave Rebellion throws in curiously blues-like tunes that are heavy on the bass. “Loose on the Tracks” is a nearly 8-minute track that opens with a rock and roll jump that slows progressively to a smooth, seductive melody, which contrasts wonderfully with the aggressive vocals. It’s a perfect contradiction and New Wave Rebellion owns up to it nicely. 

“Spinach Factory” is, in name itself, awesome. When the hell as anyone ever seen a song named after spinach? This song particularly leads with a Rage Against the Machine sort of influence, and with lyrics like “scrape the brains off the pavement” one has to wonder what runs through the minds of the four musicians in this band.           

The words of the songs aren’t always decipherable, but that ultimately leads to the continued mystique of New Wave Rebellion. Their debut album succeeded in making me want, desperately, to see them perform live. Anyone with songs like “Spinach Factory” must put on a fascinatingly wonderful show, right? While the band is not currently touring, they are playing a few sporadic shows around the area. Here’s to hoping that they put together a full tour soon so as to bring the magic of Transmogrification to the world.           

Listen to the album here.