(Independent) With roots dating back to the Addieville complex off Barber Street circa 2011, Informational Tape Announcements is narrated by Thomas Bauer, director of the 2020 DIY music documentary Athens, GA: Over/Under. Bauer is joined by Joe Hopper aka DJ JoFi, who collaborated with Bauer in Ghost Coke and on “The Advice Show” on WUOG 90.5 FM, and Lloyd Handy aka DJ Boring. While early noisy ITA releases took tongue-in-cheek themes—passive aggressive requests to roommates, snarky songs to play for significant others—last year’s self-explanatory Quarantined: COVID 19 came across as equal attempts at spreading PSAs and using comedy as a coping mechanism. Death 2 is easily the most mature and listenable release to date, with title tracks like “Power,” “Surveillance,” “Classism” and “The Ego.” Bauer’s matter-of-fact delivery is subtly funny, like a stream of consciousness that flows through instances of situational humor and absurdity. Recorded remotely between Athens, Nashville and Beijing, Death 2 has plenty of interesting beats to keep you focused whenever the plot goes too far left field.
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