Poliça - "United Crushers"

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The third record from Minneapolis-based Poliça, United Crushers is out today. It’s an album that we’ve been anticipating for months, as Poliça’s haunting style is nothing short of captivating, thanks to the remarkable voice of Channy Leaneagh. It’s not surprising then that United Crushers is one heavy, emotional, and personal album.

Channy Leaneagh’s use of vocal effects is a hugely distinctive mark on the Poliça sound. From the first track, “Summer Please”, Leaneagh’s voice starts out deep and distorted before becoming unraveled and forceful. That leads into “Lime Habit”, which features a meticulously constructed drumbeat and gorgeous and clear vocals.

As we said earlier, Poliça get heavy on United Crushers, and lyrically, the heaviest track may be “Wedding”, a politically charged track that is governed by a driving drum beat and a vocal that hits just the right amount of distortion to add urgency. “Top Coat” is huge, too – deep and dark with an electronic roar.

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“Lately” is dreamy and features another intricately produced drumbeat, which goes quite nicely into “Fish on the Griddle”. “Berlin” has sweeping synths and feels a bit uneasy, intentionally. “Baby Sucks” has a slick groove while Leaneagh’s vocal soars in between speakers. The record comes to close with the incredible “Lose You”, which contains some of the album’s most notable synth work and another mind-blowing vocal from Leaneagh.

Poliça’s third album may be their finest yet. United Crushers is haunting, it’s heavy, and it’s urgent. “Wedding” is truly one of the most important songs of the year so far. Leaneagh’s voice is ethereal at times, rough at others, but it’s all perfectly executed. That creates an immersive experience rather than just an album.