DZTN 1980 - Outside The City Cassette (/50)

Self Released (2020)

As DZTN 1980 is the new project from Dustin Herron from Abolitionist, I know how DZTN is likely supposed to be pronounced.  But that doesn't stop my brain from calling it "Datsun 1980" every time I look at this cassette.

DZTN 1980 is essentially just Dustin and his electric guitars.  Those guitars are layered with a ton of swirling effects that create something of a dreamlike vibe to each composition.  What's missing is bass and drums.  Had the guitar been acoustic rather than electric, this would have been quickly slotted as singer songwriter by most, but the fuzzy noise keeps this different from your run of the mill bedroom troubadour.

That said, I think I would like this a lot more if it was more of a full band type of situation.  The songs are structured in a way that just beg for loud crashing drum fills to jump in and assist with the transitions.  Without them, the songs feel more like incomplete sketches than they do finished songs.  There's something to this tape that I dig, but I don't think that it's the sort of thing I could see myself listening to very much as is.

DZTN 1980 - Outside The City:
https://dztn1980.bandcamp.com/album/outside-the-city-lp-2020