-=- SHGZ -=-
* Shoegaze * Indie * Post-rock * Grunge * Dream Pop * Ambient * Ethereal *
Artist..: Ringo Deathstarr
Album...: Sparkler
GENRE....: Indie
STYLE....: Shoegaze
LABEL....: Sonic Unyon SCENE.....: 2015-11-27
BITRATE..: 923 kbps avg STORE.....: 2011-00-00
ENCODER..: FLAC 1.2.1 -8 -V TRACKS....: 9
SIZE.....: 182.6MB SOURCE....: CD
URL..: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringo_Deathstarr
- TRACKLIST
1 Swirly 2:41
2 Starrsha 2:08
3 Some Kind Of Sad 2:05
4 Down On You 3:17
5 Sweet Girl 3:38
6 In Love 3:53
7 Summertime 4:06
8 Rats Live On No Evil Star 2:49
9 Your Town 2:59
Total Playtime: 27:36
Sparkler is a compilation of early songs by Ringo Deathstarr.
*
Anyone growing old waiting for My Bloody Valentine's Loveless remasters to
come out will find this compilation a diverting stopgap. Texans Ringo
Deathstarr (ouch) released their debut album of homages to the Valentines and
the Jesus and Mary Chain last February, joining a coterie of indie
revivalists such as the Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Yuck. A vinyl EP
available in three colours, Sparkler collects Ringo Deathstarr's earlier
works, even more beholden to the wasted buzzsaw melodics of the late 80s.
"Starssha" is a sped-up version of J&MC's "Just Like Honey"; "In Love" apes
J&MC's "Sidewalking". But it's the boy-girl vocals of Elliott Frazer (guitar)
and Alex Gehring (bass) that recalls the Valentines most of all. We all know
Shields will never sue.
*
Colour Trip showed us that Ringo Deathstarr are not a band who openly
re-write the book, pedalling what feels almost like 'shoegazing' by numbers
at times. As with the debut full length, the songs collected on Sparkler do
not cover any new ground; there are moments where the homage to bands like My
Bloody Valentine and Jesus and Mary Chain become almost painfully too close
to the source material for comfort. At least Ringo Deathstarr realised that
if you are going to rip other bands off, you should only rip off the very
best.
That is not to say though that the songs here are not great. The wild
cacophony of Sweet Girl, and the choking distortion of the lazy, slack opener
Swirly show a band who know how to make their instruments sound almost
uncontrollable. The guitars pretty much overpower you with waves of dreamy
buzz saw noise. 'In Love' and 'Some Kind of Sad' pound through at break neck
pace, reminiscent of Ronald Jones era Flaming Lips. It is noisy and seems not
to care what you think of it, while also being upbeat and catchy, if you can
hear it through the brilliant wails of feedback.
Put simply, overlooking the obvious homages made here, there is a lot to like
about Ringo Deathstarr, even on these early recordings. Most of the time,
when bands re-package and re-release old singles, it can be an easy cash grab
with somewhat patchy material. If you are looking for something to dislike
about this collection, you could say that perhaps more variety could have
been good, if you do not pay close attention it can feel like the feedback
laden songs run into each other and become indistinguishable. But really,
Sparkler showcases the first steps of a very promising and noisy band.
-=- SHGZ -=-
P.S.
** Thanks ***
*** BCC FNT IPC SSR ***
*** For Knowing Where The Music Is At ***
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