The Chorus Music Club Society • Page 361

Editors!

 

Such a great album, I had to pay it forward! Plus, I think @anonimito is the perfect person to review it.

 

Agreed! I think you'll dig that Hidden Hospitals album too!

 

That’s my least favorite Copeland album, but you can never really go wrong with any of them. I’m curious how you’ll like it.

 

@Petit nain des Îles I'll send you a message later regarding this :)

 

Also my Dream Wife review will be coming today @ugman_2000

 

For a moment there, I didn't think that was an album review

 

Ayyyyyyyyy

 

I'm actaully listening to this right now. It's been one of my favourite finds recently. Hope you've at least been some what enjoying it

 

Dream Wife - Dream Wife

Dream Wife are a three piece band, who as it turns out played directly after my choice of Slotface at 2000 Trees, and that makes the fact I didn’t see them even more annoying.

Hailing from London and Brighton, the band are an aggressive and groovy rock band that are clearly inspired by the Riot Grrrl movement of the 90’s, yet are an obviously modern band at the same time, with elements of modern alt rock, indie and emo. This is their debut album, released earlier this year, and the band are comprised of Rakel Mjöll on vocals, Alice Go on guitar and Bella Podpadec on bass.

This is immediately apparent on the opening track “Let’s Make Out” which opens with some delicate vocals before erupting, with Mjöll’s diverse singing being displayed front and centre, with shrieks, shouts and yells, and some very impressive clean singing. The musicianship throughout the album is top notch, with every instrument shining at different points. The bass lines always give the songs a defined sense of rhytmn, whilst the drums drive the songs forward at an often breakneck speed around guitar licks and riffs.

Second track “Somebody” seems to talk about the #metoo movement, as Mjöll sings “I am not my body, I am somebody”, before taking on the music industry by singing "You were a cute girl hanging back stage, it was bound to happen." It’s an album highlight, and is in a run of 5 or 6 superb songs to open the record.

“Fire” is a personal favourite, and is the song that is most reminiscent of Beach Slang. The song has a sense of love and youthful exuberance, whilst also embracing nostalgia. The chorus feels like an eruption of emotion that makes me wistful for a night I never experienced, with lyrics like “I remember last night, there was a fire. We danced and we screamed and we held each other tight. I remember last night.”

It is a feeling that continues in the fifth track, when Mjöll sings “Let’s be kids and fall in love”, or “I feel like I love you without reason.” Mjöll has a way of conveying these well-trodden paths without it ever feeling worn out or cliché at any point in the albums run time, and she has true personality that comes across incredibly strongly throughout. It’s these lyrics and the feel of the album that make me think fans of bands like The Gaslight Anthem or The Menzingers could also get on board with an album like this.

The second half of the album is certainly a little less memorable but still enjoyable, with tracks like "Taste" which has an addictive but fuzzy guitar riff throughout. The final track “F.U.U.” however, is an explosion of anger and aggression that still never drops the femininity of the album, and it ends the record on a real high. There is even a section of the song in a different language (perhaps Swedish, it is certainly Nordic).

Overall I found there to seven or so incredibly enjoyable tracks on here that reminded me of bands such as Beach Slang, and they are band I will definitely keep my eye on.

8/10

RIYL: Beach Slang, Honeyblood

Recommended Tracks: Fire, Somebody, Let’s Make Out, Hey Heartbreaker


So yeah, this is really, really good. I urge people to give the album a try.

 

@xapplexpiex and I have come to an agreement. I'm listening to
Dir en Grey - Withering to Death

And they are checking out
People in Planes - As Far As the Eye Can See

 

Great review mate, glad you enjoyed the album. I agree that it drops a little in the later half but my god what a great track F.U.U is. I'd not heard of this band before catching them at Trees and they were definitely one of my highlights of the weekend, they put on a real great live show and Rakel has massive stage presence. I didn't realise slotface were on before them it's crazy how we both missed such great bands by something like 20mins haha.

 

So do they have a drummer?

 

They do but I'm not sure if he's a permenant memeber of the band or not as they don't tend to mention him much. I was watching a live vid from 2016 and it was the same guy drumming as the other week so who knows what's up with that lol.

Edit: a quick google search threw up this so I guess this is the situation with that.

https://www.quora.com/Who-is-the-drummer-for-the-English-band-Dream-Wife-Does-he-exist

 

Also as I don't tend to rec albums more than once or twice in here and that I'd love you all to hear this band, these 2 tracks good a give representation of their sound.

 

Yeah, I would definitely say people in here will dig them. The two above and Fire best represent their range of sounds.

 

I think a lot of people in here would also like the Slotface album Try Not to Freak Out, that I reviewed for Sam too. Both albums have a lot of similar themes, all be it the Slotface one leans more on the sub-pop sound than the riot girrrl sound.

 

I’m loving this! The two songs are so different and their energy is palpable.

 

Yeah, it's a fantastic album and they deserve some more exposure.

 

I found out that Rakel is from Iceland. With a last name like Mjoll, I knew she had to be Scandanavian. All I can think of is Kvelertak now!


Love the video and the guitar? Wow!

 

Does He Exist lmao. More elusive than Big Foot or Nessie, this drummer is the real mystery of the world.
Spoiler: tom delonge knows where he is and who he is top government agents told him

 

I was recently paired with @Anarchivist and they recommended Pentimento's 2015 album I, No Longer. I remember quite a bit of talk about this album back when it was released, but I never spent any time with it beyond maybe one listen that I didn't really remember anything about. Fun fact: the design/art direction of the cover image and physical release were done by the same guy who did the art for both of my releases (if you have any music-related art needs I would highly recommend Cold Pizza Design Kitchen). Anyway, on to the review.



Pentimento is New York punk rock in the vein of Prawn, Somos, Light Years, etc. This is their most recent album and it starts out with the emotional "Small Talk for Strangers," which has an emo, atmospheric intro with picked guitar and aching vocals before some big drums and hard-hitting chords come in. It is a short intro track at just under two minutes, but still has plenty of bite and catchy melodies (along with some really nice full harmonies) and employs the quiet-loud dynamic to great effect. Several of the tracks on the album utilize this style, moving from quiet, twinkly verses into brash, impassioned choruses. It is easy to see why this album was so well-received in this community.

Third track "Sink or Swim" is more of a straightforward alternative rock song that reminds me of the early-00's pop-punk that many of us grew up with. The following track "Clever Reason" swings in more of a pop direction with a sugary sweet chorus that again shows another facet of the band's sound. "Got My Answer" is a slow burner that builds throughout it's runtime and finally provides a rewarding catharsis in the final minute of the song. The lyrical content in this track is impressive and heartbreaking. I found the minute-long interlude "Again" surprisingly relatable as it opens with a question that I've pondered variations of many times in the past: "Do you just need someone, or do you need me?"

This interlude leads into another slow burner called "Gateway" which is a moody track that may be my favorite on the album. It's hard to explain why this track stands out to me as it isn't as musically interesting or varied as many of the other tracks. Just something about the groove between the guitars, bass, and drums that carries through most of the song feels good! The vocals over top are fairly soft and simple and just create an atmosphere that doesn't wear out its welcome. This one, again, explodes in the final minute and even includes some screaming that is placed low in the mix but really drives the moment home. "Tiger Eye" has these dark-sounding guitar tones and explosive echoing drums that really reminded me of The Devil and God.

Tracks 10 and 11, "Slow but Sure" and "No Matter What" are simultaneously louder and poppier than most of the rest of the album, and these tracks are a really fun time and a nice change of pace. Final track "Tell Me" is similar to "Got My Answer" and "Gateway" in that it's repetitive (not in a bad way) and builds on itself until reaching a satisfying climax. This track has multiple layers of overlapping vocals at the end, serving as a great outro to the record.

When I first started listening to this record, I didn't think I would enjoy it much as I found the first few tracks to sound somewhat similar. In general, I'm not drawn strongly toward this particular brand of punk/emo/rock, and I often find a lot of the songs sound samey to me and nothing stands out too much. Despite my initial impression, as the album went on the band managed to dispel this criticism. With some tracks that are poppier, some that are heavier, and some that show how talented Pentimento are at creating and releasing tension, this album won me over. I think if this hadn't been a CMCS recommendation, I would have written this album off quickly (which I suppose I did back in 2015), but one thing that I love about this club is that it forces us to listen to albums with a more critical ear. For me at least, that almost always leads me to find many things to appreciate in an album that I might have otherwise formed a one-dimensional opinion about. This is surely why almost all of my reviews are positive ones. I'm glad I got a chance to revisit this album and gain an appreciation for the many things it does well. Thanks for the recommendation @Anarchivist!

 

Well I know nothing about this band but from the screenshot of the first music video they have indie wrestler Bea Priestley so I automatically like them!

 

@bradsonemanband made me listen to this album once. Good album.

 

YOU'RE WELCOME!