by Carly Shea

It’s amazing that such an elaborate and complex album can be created by just two people. Black Gold’s debut album, Rush, offers a new and sophisticated sound that indie rockers will eat up. The two founding members, Eric Ronick and Than Luu, started Black Gold as a music project based out of Brooklyn and were later signed to Red Bull Records.
Black Gold maintains a clear sound on their album, all of which form a consistent sound full of symbols, well laid out piano chords, and lyrics that write down raw emotion without having to cite a resentment of certain situations or a past breakup. Each song flows into the next yet somehow manages to switch between different indie rock sub-genres. Heavily influences of funk-rock can be heard on the track “Breakdown”. The heaviest genre influence that I have found on the album is the undertone of disco. Listening to tracks such as “The Comedown” and “Plans & Reveries”, I heard the retro sound of synthesizers and Eric Ronick’s voice makes me feel like I’m listening to a Bee Gee’s album.
Although Black Gold adds in disco undertones, they still stay true to the New York indie rock scene with an even blend of relaxed pop an lounge rock. Tempo varies perfectly between songs on Rush, and even includes a ballad, After The Flood. Their debut album has stepped atop the pedestal that Indie Rock has presented to them without having their sound become overkill. Black Gold’s Rush should be known as a varied and well constructed album that will fit in perfectly to any indie lover’s pre-existing CD collection.

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