LiveJournalThe Brides : Sofa City Sweetheart
13 04 08 - 13:27I must admit that US fourpiece The Brides are one of those outfits I have been aware of but never really listened to. I now have a back catalogue to go through, but in the meantime I want to review their latest album, because it is just so good.
The Brides bring together a range of musical influences, Goth, Post-Punk, Caberet, Rockabilly, Glam, New-Wave and it is hard to think of many equivalent artists - The Soho Dolls have tried to do the same think in the UK with some mainstream sucess, but The Brides just seem to pull the whole thing off so much better.
The Intro and first track 'Needs and Luxuries' fit together to deliver a piano driven Rockabilly piece with a dancable rhythm, a strong opener. A shift in style marks 'New Shocks' and 'Who Cares if you Dance', both offering punk based tribal drumming overlaid with disco sequences holding onto to a 'billy edge. Disco-billy perhaps? Although the disco-punk ground has been covered before The Brides manage to keep it distinctive and interesting with good mixed male and female vocal work.
'Got It' opens with Brit-pop-esque synths with progressibe guitars leading up to an Indie-Pop chorus. Great Vocal work, but The Scissor Sisters keep coming to mind, which may not be what everyone is up for. So it may be a relief that 'Fifty Years' leaves the bright lights of the Disco behind for more familiar post-punk bass and drum patterns. Synth fans won't be disappointed as it cuts back in during the chorus to produce something that makes She Wants Revenge look like cheap generic cigarettes to The Bride's Cuban cigarillo's. Both are addictive, but the latter is the real deal, especially with the mid song break using acoustic guitar, finger clicks, neat bass, layered vocals, building up to that synth driven chorus again. 'Fifty Years' ends with a stadium-rock guitar crescendo marking this out as one of the albums stand out tracks.
'Too Touchy-Feely', hangs of a Hammond organ type sound and more Indie Chorus structure. 'Chances with Girls' has a delicious tribal drum structure and a soft punky feel. Yet again The Brides knock out a killer chorus. 'Just Because Your Days are Numbered' is another rockier number with more enticing drumming. The organ sound returns with 'Adult Entertainment' for another stand out track. Again with the tribal drum sounds, and some fun synth-work in the cracking chorus. Yes, there is more than a trace of Brit-Pop here, almost as if Goth had actually done something in the 90's rather than knocking out tired Sisters of Mercy clones.
'Put Me Back to Sleep' is a bit Goth really, with female ethereal vocals, a lumbering gripping bass line and a nice line in tambourine. More minimal but the synths are still there. Another mid-song break is used to good effect. 'Raven's from Crows' is a piano-guitar pop-punk partnership, a great number for dancing. 'Tripoly City' heads in a more 'billy horror-punk direction with a thumping drum beat stolen from a gabba club that wasn't looking. At 1:35 it is short, catchy and a lot of fun, especially the hand-bells. 'Noir Aware' brings the organ back for more punk shenanigans. 'Soviette Vogue' is a good finish to the album, another catchy chorus, sweet vocal work, and some darker moments.
Sofa City Sweetheart is well produced, yet elements of rawness creep in, with string slides being picked up from time to time, the sort of little thing that makes a studio recording come alive. It is hard to review an album without having heard the band's journey towards it through their back catalogue, but from this showing The Brides acquit themselves well as masters of a catchy chorus who are certainly not afraid to experiment and go beyond the limitations of one musical genre. Yes there are other Indie bands out there doing this sort of thing, but somehow this fourpiece feels like they are living it rather than simply knicking ideas they couldn't be bothered to have themselves. Above all they are listenable and fun. Try them out. 4/5
The Brides : Sofa City Sweetheart
1 Sofa intro
2 Needs and Luxuries
3 New Shocks
4 Who Cares If You Dance
5 Got It
6 Fifty Years
7 Too Touchy-Feely
8 Chances with Girls
9 Just Because Your Days are Numbered
10 Adult Entertainment
11 Put Me Back to Sleep
12 Ravens from Crows
13 Triopoly City
14 Noir Aware
15 Soviet Vogue
The Brides Merch Page
The Brides Myspace
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