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Review: Jack Foley
WITH a name like Repulsion Box, you can pretty much
guess that the debut album from Sons & Daughters isn't going
to be filled with warm melodies and easy-going harmonies.
What they do offer, however, is a new-wave sound that's jam-packed
with angular, edgy guitars, raw vocals and a Gothic tint that
lends them their own identity on the Glasgow music scene.
Somewhat disappointingly, however, the album fails to live up
to the potential shown in recent single, Dance Me In,
emerging at the wrong end of the over-crowded new-wave movement
and struggling to maintain its own identity.
It's no coincidence that the album was produced by Victor Van
Vugt (of Nick Cave and PJ Harvey fame), given the similarity in
style between Repulsion Box and Harvey's latest, Uh
Huh Her.
Adele Bethel's ragged vocals, in particular, are spawned from
the Harvey era, while their fast, energetic style is also reminiscent
of The Kills.
Tracks such as Hunt and Medicine screech past
in the blink of an eye without really registering on the ear,
while several sound similar and repetitive.
Had there been more of the intensity displayed in Dance Me
In, Royally Used, or Rama Lama (which includes
some nice vocal interplay between Bethel and backing singer, Scott
Paterson) this might have fared better.
As it stands, Sons & Daughters fail to ignite in the way
they had previously threatened.
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Track listing:
1. Medicine
2. Red Receiver
3. Hunt
4. Dance Me In
5. Choked
6. Taste The Last Girl
7. Monsters
8. Rama Lama
9. Royally Used
10. Gone
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