Single Review: Ferrari Gosling

Originally formed in 2013 after a jam session in Houston, Texas, Auckland-based ‘psych-rock’ four-piece Makeshift Parachutes have just released the first single from their upcoming debut album. The intriguingly entitled Ferrari Gosling, is an infectious, time-and-mind-bending, hook-laden, gem of a track.

Ferrari Gosling kicks off with a soaring, fuzzy-synth line reminiscent of Van Halen’s Jump, a blistering bass-run, driving drum-beat, and impressively high, yet strong, clean, and confident vocal line. The track feels like it settles down into a solid groove by approximately 40 seconds in as the vocal drops back into what feels like a more natural timbre. Lesser bands, or at least less adventurous ones, would probably settle for milking this groove for much longer, however, Makeshift Parachutes instead decide to turn it all on its head.

With a sudden, manic time-signature change, Ferrari Gosling turns from relatively straight-ahead rock, albeit very good straight-ahead rock, to more progressive, psychedelic, and fractured. The melodic instrumentation doesn’t just shorten, or play double time, or many other standard rock n roll tricks, but instead seem to chop themselves into tiny pieces, like a stuck record, or like something the classic prog-rock greats such as Rush, King Crimson, or even Zappa would blow audience minds with.

Like some of my favourite music, this track—due to that manic, schizophrenic time-signature change—didn’t quite make musical sense to me at first, but this is a track that really rewards you on repeated listens. This is no bubble-gum pop track, this is one that you have to do a little work to enjoy, and that is incredibly refreshing. Ferrari Gosling is one of those rare tracks that just keeps getting better with each listen.

I’m definitely looking forward to what comes next from Makeshift Parachutes.