On” Synchronisizer,” a place to hide strangers wo n’t let up.

In the 1970s, it was a thing for rock bands to be officially dubbed the Loudest Band in the World, per the Guinness Book of Records and decibel readings taken at concerts. (The Who held the title for several years.) Back then, it was about sheer, in-your-face power and being heard. In a post-punk era, it has meant something else. Thunderous noise rock, like Sonic Youth, can be in your face but also take you out of your comfort zone, negate your ego, or help facilitate, as A Place to Bury Outsiders titled an earlier song, “Ego Death”.

Since the Oliver Ackerman-fronted A Place to Bury Outsiders began in Brooklyn in the early 2000s, the group has proudly and ably taken the title of Loudest Band in the World title for themselves, both in recordings and, especially live. On Synthesizer, their seventh record, singer/guitar/effects man Ackerman is joined in an oft-rotating lineup by John and Sandra Fedowitz, on bass and drums, respectively, who contributed to the songwriting.

Here, A Place to Bury Outsiders continue to draw from seminal, post-punk influences while always taking things to new places. Ackerman built a synthesizer specifically for making this release—he makes customized guitar pedals through his company, Death By Audio, for top acts (e.g., TV on the Radio, U2). That’s certainly one way to ensure originality. The vinyl version of Synthesizer comes with a circuit board converted into a portion of the same synthesizer—which is also the cover of the record. You are probably thinking: What?

Ackerman calls the music on Synthesizer “pretty messed up, chaotic”, yet it still “feels really human”, and he is on point. This is a remarkably fresh and original-sounding record, dense with all sorts of surprising and odd effects. Repeat listening and neighbor-friendly headphones vastly enhanced my appreciation for what A Place to Bury Outsiders are doing. There is dancefloor-friendly goth rock (ala Joy Division), intense synth (like a Suicide), trippy shoegaze (e.g., My Bloody Valentine), and so on, but it never sounds derivative. Instead, there is a sense of blowing things up, rebuilding, and re-synthesizing everything into something new.

There are few signs of more traditional song structures—though” Fear of Transformation”,” Bad Idea” and” Comfort Never Comes” are all standout tracks —and that is by design, of course. An improved and interesting history and a better one could have benefitted from some more song structure.

The group hit the ground running, or grinding, with the professional anxiety of” Disgust”. In” Fear of Transformation”, a paranoia (” Fear of knowing / Fear is growing …” ) finally breaks with some manic, Ministry levels of coordinated mayhem. They frequently enter dark and dangerous place without completely veering off.

At other times, there is a strumming guitar married with space-rock effects (” Join the Crowd” ), or it is tense rhythms, twisted distortions with a danceable beat (” You Got Me” ), or yelps and buzzsaw guitars (” Have You Ever Been in Love” ). Each song has its own distinctively strange sound and feeling. Sandra Fedowitz’s moving, snapping drum balance machine-like accuracy with society, while John’s deep bass helps keep some necessary purchase.

Ackerman’s lyrics are like an offshoot of gothic, Ian Curtis, and, at times, even everything like” Pink Frost”. In a world that is already incredibly gloomy and ambiguous, the lyrical designs are largely about love and grief. Thus, representative lines include:” Dreams flow freely from an open wound” (” Join the Crowd” ), and” Let me down time and time again/ Somehow I still want to see you / Turning down the one-way dead-end” (” Do n’t Be Sorry” ).

Ackerman’s words is also frequently drenched in echo, which may sound like an sound buried in the mix and become hard to interpret. Of course, the impact itself is often the information, it is a blurry tone buried in anguish and confusion, but the voice also comes through.

The wonderful and curiously comforting send-off, and maybe the show, is” Comfort Not Comes”. This sort of reflects a difficult way of seeing things in life, as the name suggests, but these songs and initial albums like this are unquestionably helpful. Finally, it nearly goes without saying that this document will likely lead to some pretty devastating live performances.