So Many Wizards

The best description of So Many Wizards’ debut comes from the band itself: “Warm Nothing is that blank feeling that comes from being lost in whatever you’re doing,” they say. “It’s beautiful, but it comes and goes.” In more visceral terms, the album feels like being enveloped in a shadowy cocoon and lulled into a hazy, nightmarish sleep. There’s a heavy amount of reverb employed throughout Warm Nothing, making the band’s simple guitar riffs and slow bass lines both sound hit with a muted punch. Meanwhile, frontman Nima Kazerouni’s vocals alternate between effortless speak-sing and eerie falsetto. On “Deep Down” he warns, “Don’t listen to the forces in your head, don’t listen to the forces that confuse,” reflecting the dreamy yet sinister quality of the music. So Many Wizards nicely balance clarity of thought and haziness in sound through hypnotizing melodies, making Warm Nothing the ideal soundtrack to dark nights filled with tortured thoughts.