New York rock band Geese dropped their third album, “Getting Killed,” last Friday, Sept. 26. The band’s first full studio album since their 2023 breakout release “3D Country,” “Getting Killed” was preceded by three singles and was one of the most highly anticipated releases in indie music circles.

In the past few weeks, Geese has been profiled by the likes of Rolling Stone, GQ and The New York Times, and “Getting Killed” has already been lauded by publications like Pitchfork. In the coming weeks, the band will headline an international tour and play dozens of shows with other new and exciting acts like Dove Ellis and Racing Mount Pleasant. 

Geese’s members — vocalist Cameron Winter, guitarist Emily Green, bassist Dominic DiGesu and drummer Max Bassin — began playing music together roughly a decade ago while they were in high school. What began as an after-school activity soon became a serious endeavor. By the time the group graduated, they had self-recorded several albums, including “Projector,” their only self-produced release still on streaming platforms. That project was strong enough to attract interest from several labels, and from that point it was off to the races for Geese.

Part of the allure of a band like Geese is that they defy immediate categorization. Based on their Artist Playlists on Spotify, where artists add their own music preferences, the band members are listening to everything from Talking Heads to Albert Ayler, and Yuno Miles to Bo Diddley. Because they have such varied influences — and because each member is incredibly musically proficient — Geese truly has a sound of its own. That’s an enviable trait for any band, let alone for one whose members are in their early twenties.

But if there’s any point in their career where Geese distinguished itself sonically from its peers and predecessors, it’s at “Getting Killed.” The album opens up with “Trinidad,” the second of the singles released earlier this year. The track switches back and forth from a plodding, psychedelic rock into a cacophony of noise courtesy of percussion samples and howls from Winter about bombs in his car. In an album full of explosive, abrasive tracks, this one stands out as the most volatile. 

For “Getting Killed,” Geese tapped producer Kenny Beats. Perhaps best known for his work in the rap world, Beats’ production complements this album surprisingly well. Many songs, such as the groovy “Husbands” or the driving, Led Zeppelin-esque title track, feature loud, in-your-face percussion mixing samples and live drums. Rhythm dominates this album, giving its tracks a pulse so tense, they are bound to raise your heart rate.

Another distinguishing factor of “Getting Killed” is Winter’s lyricism. Winter, whose highly praised debut album “Heavy Metal” got the band more attention in the past year, consistently steals the show with his lyrics and wildly expressive vocals. At least once per song, the vocalist manages to slip in a one-liner that sticks with you, like “there is only dance music in times of war” on the third single, “100 Horses.” Though the lyrics might seem absurd at times, Winter’s voice has such an emotive quality to it that you can’t help but resonate to whatever it is he’s saying.

The album peaks, emotionally at least, in its final few songs. After Winter bares his heart out on the “No Surprises” sound-alike “Au Pays du Cocaine” and delivers an aggressive vocal on the driving “Bow Down,” the tracklist comes to “Taxes.” As the lead single, “Taxes” has already accrued almost three million streams on Spotify. Despite this, the beatdrop always finds a way to hit you right in the chest. After the cascading outro of “Taxes” comes to an end, “Long Island City Here I Come” builds pressure with a bullet train pace for nearly seven minutes before coming to an abrupt halt. 

“Getting Killed” is one of those albums that has a career-defining quality to it, showing a band at its most creatively distinct moment. Geese has crafted an album more than worthy of that status, and, impressively, everyone in the band is just five years out of high school. “Getting Killed” is a total artistic triumph, one that solidifies Geese in the forefront of today’s best music.