A couple of months ago I was contacted by London masked electro duo Truly Beautiful Disaster and Brighton’s grungey alt rockers The Silence in the hopes of a bit of publicity (well, so I assume). I’m still figuring out my policy on reviewing demos or unsolicited submissions but I think it’ll be along the lines of “feel free to send anything along, but it’s even odds as to whether I will or won’t write about it”. Those are better odds than me ever being able to write full-time, heh.
So first up, Truly Beautiful Disaster. They sent me a solitary tune, a 6-minute slice of electro called ‘Miranda’s Verandah’. While researching the band a bit I found a pedal sharing their name, and I have to wonder if they make use of it. Anyway, I don’t really know too much about electro but I’m faintly reminded of Daft Punk, although working from this track TBD are working at a slower tempo. I believe the young peoples might enjoy listening to this in a musical disco.
The Silence are a band I feel more equipped to grapple with. I got sent three tunes along with a press release-style email that was clearly written for me, which was terribly sweet. Press releases are so soulless, and it’s nice when something isn’t copy and pasted. Anyway, the three tunes are ‘Devil’s Kiss’, ‘Submission’, and ‘Serpentine’. The first of these is apparently slated for self-release as a single early in ’09: it’s the strongest of the three songs in my opinion, with understated riffs and subtle hooks. ‘Submission’ is a similar song although not as memorable as its predecessor; by contrast ‘Serpentine’ is a slow burner, with the verses building nicely and crescendoing in a strong chorus.
Vocalist Boe reminds me a little of Corin Tucker (when Tucker actually sings) although don’t expect any Sleater-Kinney similarities in the music itself. It’s probably more of a 90s-alt rock female vocalist thing, in truth, because The Silence are a very 90s band. This is no bad thing – they’re not breaking any new ground but in these nostalgic times it’s good to hear a band doing something old and doing it well.
I’d be happy to hear and pass comment on more demos if I enjoy them as much as I did these.