EP REVIEW: Clouded Room – General Admin

With their roots in New Zealand and the UK, GENERAL ADMIN have something of a unique experience of where they’ve grown with music. Finding respite in bands like PAVEMENT, FUGAZI and SLINT, those influences planted seeds in the minds of the three friends over the years and can be heard blossoming on their new EP Clouded Room. Reminiscent of the smoky box like venues they grew up attending shows in, not only does the EP remain grateful and loyal to their modest beginnings, but as the record plays, the sincerity of three best friends making music that they would have loved to listen to back in the day, shines bright. 

Clouded Room is a brief first encounter with GENERAL ADMIN, but it’s one that will stick with you for reasons you might not expect. Before you even know it, it’s over when the final moment of distortion graces your ears; the unassuming opening track Returns Diminishing’s multiple faces of math-infused, wading post-punk and rolling riffs make for something closer to background music for a purposeful walk to clear your head than an invigorating listen. Barnacle incorporates some more passion, or rather noticeable effort, with vocal inflections that will only momentarily pique your interest and closer Seventh Night, the third track of the EP, jumps between creating delicate atmosphere with gentle shakiness of cymbals, to driving choruses of shapeless riffs that have an exciting pulse to them when they fancy it.

It’s clear that Clouded Room isn’t here to knock anyone’s socks off, or an attempt to make GENERAL ADMIN the new shiny product on the shelf, they’re a few mates in their forties after all, which doesn’t seem like an illusion to them. Instead the release serves as a time capsule for the band and whoever else fancies indulging in what it sounds like to make art with friends, and whilst it might not have greatest musical value, traditionally — whatever that means these days – it’s much richer and inspiring in the fact that the music only exists to serve them in making art as friends. A beauty that you can’t easily put a price on in the year 2024.

Rating: 5/10

Clouded Room is out now via self-release.

Follow GENERAL ADMIN on Bandcamp.