| The Drums – The Drums |  |
I was awaiting the release of this album a long while before it actually came out but then it when it finally did I must of forgotten about it or suffered some amnesia or something. Cut to about a month ago when I heard it surprisingly enough in my brother’s car. I didn’t think anyone knew about this indie-surf band, but it re-triggered something and I had to check it out. Their leadoff single “Let’s Go Surfing” had an irresistible bare bones indie charm so what else did these guys have to offer?
Much like their catchy single, The Drums rely on very basic arrangements soaked in reverb. Though there was something about their sparseness that I couldn’t quite put my finger on, until I did some wiki research. Shockingly The Drums don’t have a bass player, rather they have two guitarists that each fill different roles. One providing melodic patterns while the other drones in a hypnotic fashion. So instead of a low end on the tracks you have a kind of twangy rhythm played much like a bass. It’s a daring move that took me awhile to notice, so I suppose mission accomplished, but it’s still played like a bass so it’s still kind of odd.
The Songs are produced in an echoey way that almost reminds me of The Cure minus Robert Smith. The vocals here are often soft or straightforward with pleasant backing voices bouncing around in the mix. The guitars and drums keep to simplistic patterns that compliment the calming melodies. The only big problem here is how similar these songs all sound. Sometimes I could swear I heard the same song twice or something. These guys have clearly established a defining sound but they rely on it so heavily it comes off as repetitive. I’d really like to see them go out of their comfort zone on more tracks and maybe experiment a little more with different arrangements Basically it’s a nice record but easily forgettable aside from a few of the earlier tracks.
Favorite Tracks: “Best Friends” “It Will All End in Tears”, “Let’s Go Surfing”