Silver and Gold
- Silver Cities EP
- Though Silver Cities is still coming into their sound and their own, they are heading in a good direction. Another job well-done by Velvet Blue Music on releasing sounds from the underground that don't suck.
- Buy the EP from VBM
Anyone that has been following Crap Filter probably knows that I have declared a personal vendetta against dance rock for the year of 2006. So, it’s just my luck that when I receive a brand spanking new CD from one of my favorite indy labels, Velvet Blue Music, it turns out to be some dance rock band called Silver Cities that I suspected sounded like every fourth band to release music in the past year. But, since I trust Jeff and his musical prowess, I decided to give it a spin and take on this review, rather than pawning it off to some other Craphead (my personal affectionate term for Crap Filter writers, like myself).
At first, I thought I’d regret the decision. “Why the hell didn’t I just send this to Vin? He has no musical taste, he’ll be okay listening to dance rock crap.” But my sentiments started to fade as the CD began it’s second go round, and by the third and fourth, I found a few tracks making me tap my toe and sing along. And by the fifth listen of this short five track EP, it hooked me… “This ain’t half bad… Actually… It’s pretty damn good.”
The first track begins somewhat spastically with a disjointed dancey keyboard riff. The drums break in and then the vocals. This first track is where the vocalist tries the most interesting things with his voice, coming off similarly to the singer from NYC act The Rapture, or even perhaps a young David Byrne. Though this vocal experimentation is rough and annoying at first, it grows on you. The track closes with a fun sing-a-long and leaves the listener happy and ready for more.
The next track is a more straight forward pop-punk flavored rock tune with dance rock drums. Vocally, we now find out what the singer’s voice sounds like when he doesn’t experiment with what he can sound like… it’s not bad. A well-placed yell of “Yeah” is the vocal highlight in this one, in fact that single “Yeah” shows off a bratty punk rock attitude that enhances the song ten fold. This track blends very well into the third… another tune with a similar feel, a great bass line, and similar vocal delivery.
The final two songs create a slightly different tone, the fourth track is a throwback tune ala The Strokes and the last track is my personal favorite… an indy rock anthem with an 80’s feel and a message of standing together and supporting one another. Michael Silversmith’s vocals on this track seem to really shine, like he really found his style on this one.
All in all, the album has very solid hooks and is not just another dance rock album, as I had first feared. True, I would lump it into the genre of dance rock, but unlike many of the cookie cutter bands popping up in the mainstream right now, they seem to be willing to play their own brand. With a song that reminds me of the spastic disco-garage-rock of The Rapture (vocally and musically), pop-punk styled tunes, and some shades of The Strokes (or bands that influenced them, like The Kinks and The Who), Silver Cities is not a carbon copy of The Killers, Franz Ferdinand, or whatever dance-rock-du-jour is on the airwaves right now.
The sound was well complimented by the lyrics on this album, spiritual questions and struggles seemed very evident, but there wasn’t anything preachy on here. And, though, they seem to still be coming into their sound and their own, they are heading in a good direction. Another job well-done by Velvet Blue Music on releasing sounds from the underground that don’t suck.
January 25th, 2006 at 9:38 am
harlan, just because i dig kelly clarkson’s new tune doesn’t mean i have bad musical taste.
alright, maybe it does.
January 25th, 2006 at 9:48 am
Vin, Kelly Clarkson is totally okay to like. I am a bit of a closet fan myself. I just like to mock you because I can… since I am an elitist music snob.