So, how ’bout that Sleigh Bells backlash?

Reign of Terror, the new record from Brooklyn-based ‘buzz band’ (officially the worst ever descriptor for ‘band Pitchfork likes’) is out today. Pitchfork loves it, because of course they do. Consequence of Sound likes it as well. Reviews elsewhere seem middling but not particularly inflammatory. So far, the critical reaction has been about what I expected. There’s not that much to discuss beyond how this record refines the blown-out insanity of Treats by turning down the volume in a few places and shifting from cheerleading chants to actual lyrics in others. Personally I think it’s pretty solid. It’s fun noise-pop with a slightly more serious edge than the previous album. It’s got a more shoegaze-y feel, and it’s certainly a less grating listen than Treats could be at times.

What really fascinates me about this band, though, is the incomprehensible rage they inspire in certain individuals. I follow New York-based concert archivist Dan Lynch on twitter, and he is apparently one such person. “Anyone who has ever given a positive review to Sleigh Bells is hereby banned from giving any future opinions on music,” reads one particular tweet from this past weekend. Generally I like Lynch, and I think his site is an absolutely fantastic resource for live music. I just fail to understand what exactly about Sleigh Bells inspires hatred of this sort, which I’ve recently seen reflected in various blogs and comments sections. There are hyped up bands that do nothing for me (I still don’t quite get Tune-Yards), but why be so hyperbolic about it? Part of the issue seems to stem from Sleigh Bells’ performance on SNL this weekend, which featured its two primary members plus an additional guitarist performing in front of a literal wall of Marshall stacks. Patrick Stickles (of Titus Andronicus) posted an amusing series of tweets about the consumer’s right to know how many of those amps were actually turned on (‘stack transparency,’ of course). Admittedly, they didn’t sound great on SNL. but who does sound great on SNL? The show is notorious for making 90% of bands, credible or not, sound like garbage. Other than the subpar mixing though, there wasn’t anything particularly wrong with the performance. Sleigh Bells are a noise-pop band prominently featuring girl-group pop vocals, metal guitar riffs and distorted drum machines. They deliver what they promise. They are not the most talented or important band out there right now, but they also don’t claim to be. I get that they’re not everyone’s cup of tea, but nobody’s forcing you to listen to them. It’s not like ‘Born to Lose’ is an inescapable radio smash.

I realize that musical backlash is not a new phenomenon. It just seems like there have been unusually high levels of energy and time poured into the internet hate machine over the past few days. I should probably know well enough by now to expect that when there’s a hyped record on the way. Better start the preparations now for the inevitable shit-storm over the forthcoming Odd Future tape.