life and death in the suburbs – fair & sqr (2025) – Album Review

Album: life and death in the suburbs

Artist:  fair & sqr

Release Date:  January 27, 2025

Let’s look at the album by fair & sqr, life and death in the suburbs. The person behind fair & sqr is Thom Quinn, of Geelong, Australia. He creates audio and visual components that rely on distorted nostalgia, absurdism, and surrealism that would be at home in any David Lynch home movie collection. In fact, I would say I can draw comparisons from Crazy Clown Time to “life and death in the suburbs.” You get cryptic and literal messages in broken-down sing-song poetry; however, with f & s’s lo-fi production choices, it leaves it a bit lacking the same kind of sonic impact. It’s a shame, as I feel the lack of dynamics makes the entire record sound “static” or “caustic,” which may be intentional, but that will limit the audience’s tolerance towards any repeated listening. 

There is a standout on the album that I will recommend that people listen to. Track 2 “the routine remains” theme and lyrics to match up really well with the drag-like vocals and sluggish yet familiar melody. Describing one’s daily routine in glib retrospect fits perfectly with the lo-fi aesthetic and sometimes off-tune/out-of-key instruments. The fuzzed-out guitars, minimal drums, use of Speak-and-Spell samples, and cheesy synths make it a good, by-the-numbers indie track. However, you soon run into the problem of the rest of the album, which is that everything sounds EXACTLY THE SAME, the entire way through. I like a good gimmick, but only if it’s used in a clever way and executed well. That’s not to say there are not moments where you get a glimpse of something special, but that glimpse turns into a conveyor belt carrying the same thing, ad nauseam. If f & s could change up their vocal delivery, that would do well to break up the lethargic trugery. Some tempo changes, shortening of tracks, and better mixing choices would make this a standout album versus something you’d just listen to for 15 seconds and throw back to the liminal space whence it came.