THE
ROMAN LINE- Morning Portraits (Merman Records)
The Roman Line is a new band, straight out of
Toronto, Canada (with their name referring to
the informal name for a particular road in Ontario).
On their debut LP Morning Portraits, they play
a multitude of styles, combining the snarling
energy of punk rock with the sing-along melodies
of country, but if I were to label this anything,
it would be rock ‘n’ roll. The timeless
songwriting style lends itself to a traditional
rock ‘n’ roll style. There is a
refreshing and honest simplicity to The Roman
Line, that they do without succumbing to being
a Ramones homage, or indeed a homage to anyone.
They are hardly inventing new genres, but equally
there is something quite distinct and refreshing
about Morning Portraits. There are minor similarities
to be made with some modern bands, such as Loved
Ones or Gaslight Anthem, but The Roman Line
manages to capture an earlier sound than that.
The songwriting prowess of Paul Westerburg and
The Replacements particularly came to mind.
Key tracks include the punchy power punk of
“Jimmy” (my personal favourite track),
the country ‘n’ roll campfire sing-along
of “Worst Case, Ontario” and the
rock balladry of “Talbot and Inkerman”.
There is enough variety here to satisfy listeners
who are even slightly into their punk rock or
rock ‘n’ roll, whilst managing to
avoid the clichés associated with such
an album i.e. it will also appeal to those few
people left who still enjoy listening to full
albums. Despite the plethora of styles, Morning
Portraits flows pleasingly from track to track.
Watch out for this band; they can really write
a tune.
THE
DODOS- Time To Die (Frenchkiss)
Speaking of paint-by-numbers indie...No, to
be fair, The Dodos are good at what they do.
It’s just that what they do is so played
out and dull by this point, it’s almost
rendered pointless. Not that it would matter
if this was a fun record of course.
Time
To Die is faux-emotive, Keane-lite indie
pop for those cooler than thou kids who wear
scarves and shit. Some great vocals cannot hide
what is a tiresome, cheesy album. There are
a couple of exceptions. “The Strums”
is an enjoyable piece of uplifting folk music,
with pretty much the only interesting lyrics
on the album, and opener “Small Deaths”
is a well written ballad. But these kind of
moments are too far and in between. All in all,
The Dodos are the archetypal talented band who
offer very little in the way of interest, and
instead decide to play safe. I’m surprised
this isn’t already on the radio, to be
honest.
ULTRA
VIOLENT LIGHTS- Here in Filth (Sidecho Records)
This is a band obviously influenced by ‘90s
alternative rock, as well as a dash of ‘70s
classic rock. UV Lights should have been around
before the rock mainstream became emo-obsessed.
They would have been semi-huge, or at least
been a one-hit wonder.
Here in Filth
has Foo Fighters, Feeder, Smashing Pumpkins
et al written all over it. And it’s good.
There’s some big choruses plastered over
this album that are as good as most from this
genre (see: “Skin & Bones”).
The driving melodies supporting these choruses
also help to make enjoyable rock songs. But
then there are really boring, miserable ones,
like “Some Kind of Reason”. This
is an example of where bands try to diversify
and show that they are more than just a one
trick pony, when actually it turns out that
they should stick to what they are good at.
It cannot be denied that this is a well made
album with all members of the band playing their
instruments to a really high standard. But alas,
Here in Filth lacks a certain spark to put itself
above the competition. As it is, this is rather
forgettable fare.
The
Drums – “Summertime” EP
(Twenty Seven)
The title of this EP is a perfect advertisement
for the songs within. “Summertime”
brims with a sunny, care-free confidence dedicated
to those lazy summer days. Perhaps with this
being released in October, The Drums have made
a glaring error. But, to be honest, it matters
little. Listening to these sunny anthems whilst
it continues to be as grey and dreary as possible
outside is overridden by the sheer quality and
durability of The Drums’ musicianship.
So what do The Drums sound like? Well, they
are poppy to the max, synths an’ all.
The organic vocal-led melodies continue unabashed
throughout; ‘Summertime’ is virtually
catchiness itself. The Drums take a big chunk
of their influence from The Beach Boys, and
similar ‘60s surf-pop. Having said that,
the quirky vocals and use of synths most definitely
do not originate from this era; instead I would
place this in 1980s indie-town, with The Cure
specifically coming to mind. The two influences
strangely go well together, creating sing-along,
toe-tapping anthems for the late Noughties.
Songs like ‘The Saddest Summer Ever’
are virtually begging to be hummed throughout
the day. Even a week after listening to these
pop gems, you will find them stuck in your head.
I’ve heard people say that The Drums are
just hipsters once again riding the nostalgia
train, but I would argue that the blurring of
the genres they are taking influence from, and
their own unique quirky take on a classic style,
puts the band beyond just nostalgia hunting.
Nakatomi Plaza - Ghosts (nakatomiplaza.com)
This is really, really good, and I can’t
help but feel that I am way too late on this
train. Having just embarked on their last ever
tour that included Lemuria and Good Luck, Nakatomi
Plaza are calling it a day, with Ghosts being
their parting gift. They have been going for
over ten years, released four full lengths,
and yet I never felt the inclination to check
them out, despite them being friends/touring
buddies with a lot of bands I like. Damn it,
I’m stupid sometimes. Anyway, they couldn’t
have picked a more fitting tribute to their
time as band than Ghosts. It is accessible enough
to allow new fans like me to check out their
huge back catalogue, whilst also leaving long-time
fans with some of their best work.
Ghosts cuts deep with anthem after
anthem; this really is, in many ways, a masterclass
in that ‘90s based indie-punk sound. If
you think nothing can be added to that sound,
Nakatomi Plaza will prove you wrong. There’s
some Jawbox, a slab of Superchunk and a hint
of Jawbreaker in there, but really this is completely
Nakatomi Plaza’s own record. Quiet, stop-start
verses, soaring choruses and some of the best
vocals in punk I’ve heard. It’s
timeless stuff. The interchange between the
male and female vocalists (my Achilles heel),
Rodriguez and Fair, is simply delightful on
ballad-y sing-along “Words.” Opener
“Bomb Shelter” and “Artificial
Light” meanwhile have a rock bombast that
many would kill for. Minus the screamy parts
and a couple of semi-pretentious guitar solos,
and this is nigh-on perfect rock record. ‘Ghosts’
could be attached to many sub-genres (post hardcore,
emo, indie-punk) but I think this is a band
that goes beyond these labels; this is just
a great rock record.
Finn
Riggins- Vs Wilderness (Tender Loving Empire)
I really don’t like this. This is the
kind of ridiculous, pretentious hip indie-pop
that got me into punk rock in the first place.
You just know there are kids out there attempting
to enjoy this album, in a vain attempt to be
cool. I say that, because I can’t see
a possible way this could be enjoyed. Not only
is this album so invariably pretentious, it’s
also really fucking dull. The first three seconds
of a song pretty much define the rest of the
song, and to be honest, the rest of the album.
I swear there’s only one chord on this
record, so much so it’s almost physically
irritating to listen to. I don’t even
really know how to describe Finn Riggins; they’re
just bizarre in a really bad way. It’s
like Frank Sinatra type vocals, with the female
equivalent chiming in now and again, sung over
an overly-dense instrumental from The Polyphonic
Spree i.e. way too many instruments going on
at once. Finn Riggins are obviously very talented
at doing what they do, but that’s not
the only desirable part of listening to a band,
or we would all be listening to X-factor contestants.
I actually wouldn’t be surprised if this
was an X-factor contestant; it’s that
bland. You know when your dad says that what
you’re listening to isn’t music,
it’s noise? This is the closest I’ve
found to that band. – David Brown
