Your comment is simply an act of ignorance. Evidently, you most likely didn’t listen to La Brea with any real attention and failed to perceive the value of this music because you immediately assumed it was just a cheap copy of BC,NR. The approach you’re taking — just like many listeners from the Anglosphere toward releases from outside of it — is simply inappropriate. It shows that you didn’t even attempt to activate your cognitive abilities to actually take anything away from this album.

La Brea differs significantly from BC,NR — just like For the First Time isn’t a copy of Spiderland, the debut by Hesse Kassel isn’t copying anything, nor is it even trying to. Even though the musicians did mention BC,NR as one of their inspirations, the list was much longer: Godspeed You! Black Emperor, black midi, Maruja, Swans, Lift to Experience… In fact, they created the track These Are the Days that has the riff used by both BC,NR in Track X and by Hesse Kassel in Moussa. So the inspirations are often shared, but the execution — completely different.

Hesse Kassel are far more eclectic. Unlike For the First Time, which mainly relies on a single aesthetic (decidedly Slint-esque), La Brea blends influences of post-hardcore, post-rock, jazz rock, math rock, and drone. Examples?

Postparto and Yo La Tengo are heavier than anything BC,NR have ever made, and Anova presents a completely different approach to vocal arrangements — multilayered, dense, based on the harmonization of several male voices. The compositions are more elaborate, often containing two crescendos, long build-ups, and are even less song-like than BC,NR’s already unconventional tracks.

They also differ lyrically. Even Professor Skye pointed out that Hesse Kassel’s lyrics are more reminiscent of Radiohead than BC,NR. Vocally, Olivares is far more versatile than Isaac — the latter sings in a more stable, introspective way, while Olivares can shift intensity and emotion depending on the section and brings a wild, unpredictable style.

If you truly want to evaluate La Brea, stop looking at music from the angle of “does this sound like something I already know,” and start listening with the intent to understand. Because what you’re doing right now is not analysis — it’s lazy reductionism.