The case that can often be made against noodlin' guitar punk bands is that they take a long time to go nowhere. Inuit, on the other hand, always seems to be heading or spiraling somewhere; their songs naturally pulsate in and out of the sort of moody climaxes that we've come to expect from the Midwest. Accordingly, all of the adjectives that are used when talking about noodlin' punk -- chill, relaxed, groovy, loungy, frolicsome -- apply here, though the music is still above and beyond these characteristics.
The best example of this is "Beeb", which begins with more than a minute and a half of slow, bending guitar and bass notes, then shifts into a sort of nice-day-in-the-park feel, as the music begins a cautious expansion that lasts until the song's end. Like other instrumental music, "Beeb" has an enjoyably fluid song structure. Likewise, "The Enabler" both acts as a bridge between two of the album's most dramatic tracks and is, in itself, one of the album's best moments, in which the band slides between two equally addictive guitar lines.
The most impressive thing about Inuit, though, is their lack of differentiation between noodlin' instrumentals and punk rock anthems. The Enabler makes very little distinction between the tracks that have lyrics and those that don't; instead of depending on emotionally screamed words or memorable choruses, Inuit's vocals are skewed to sound like mere speculation, as if blown in and out on the wind. In this way, the lyrics cleverly follow the music; more specifically, they stumble in its wake, never clinging to any one melody.
The Enabler also offers some very unique rhythmic experimentation. On the more dramatic side are songs like "Bull Market" and "Chewable Vitamins". These tunes are based on waltz-like time signatures, and they literally spiral their pounding guitars in and out of the mix. Even the group's least energetic songs feature enticing beats; the most obvious example would be "Pamona Down", which layers a 4/4 guitar line on top of a 3/4 one to impressive effect.
As a whole, The Enabler is pristinely recorded, stressing the group's talented guitar work. Like its songs, the album is laid out asymmetrically; it begins with some of the rougher and darker tracks, then slowly (but not completely) immerses itself in sunnier music. In this way, the listener is truly transported from point A to a separate, though not entirely alien, point B.
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