ENVY – insomniac doze (anniversary edition) – VINYL 2xLP (gold)

In 2006, Japan’s envy irreparably blurred the lines dividing all the various sub-genres of underground rock, smearing post-hardcore, screamo, shoegaze, and ambient minimalism into their cinematic opus, Insomniac Doze. It was not a destination without a path – the band’s previous two albums, All the Footprints You’ve Left Behind and the Fear Expecting Ahead (2001) and A Dead Sinking Story (2003), were clear indicators that change was ahead. As always, envy were driven by creative curiosity and emotional exploration. Perhaps no album in their nearly four-decade history exemplifies this pursuit more than Insomniac Doze. Twenty years later, it stands as a progenitor, and one of the premier examples of the preconceptions of punk getting reduced to vapor.