The Muscadettes
The Muscadettes (The Montréal band led by twins Chantal and Kathleen Ambridge) have released a couple of EPs this year ("Side A" and "Side B") which not only tap into the West Coast guitar-fuelled garage-band roots of bands such as California's Bleached and Best Coast, the whirlwind that is Seattle's Purity Ring - not to mention the ear for a melody of fellow Canadians Alvvays and a take no prisoners attitude of Toronto's The Beverleys - to absolutely nail that surf-rock meets post-punk Indie-rock sound and claimed it for themselves.
Indeed it's the release of "Side B" that allows me to also rave retrospectively about their debut EP "Side A" which was released earlier this year.
Indeed it's the release of "Side B" that allows me to also rave retrospectively about their debut EP "Side A" which was released earlier this year.
Side A's opener, "I'm in love" may just be the best song that the Cape Breton / Prince Edward Island quintet have never written - pounding drums and a tsunami of guitars propel gloriously echoed vocals on a song that breaks through the sound-barrier as swirling keyboards à la Kerri MacLellan link everything together. "I'm in love" is the kind of song that is - as I may have mentioned once or twice - so infectious that it should probably be quarantined.
The thing is though, every track on "Side A" sounds like it's a hit single. With "Growing pains" the band offer us a far more raucous sound. Channeling the energy of early Vivian Girls (not strictly a West Coast band - although Frankie Rose and recently domesticated Katy Goodman now reside amongst the warmer climes of the City of Angels), there's gritty vocals, a hypnotic hook and once again magnificent keys - which not only add a noticeable 60s psychedelic feel - they again act as the song's glue. And those psychedelic keyboards feature prominently on "Pearl and oyster" - apparently the 'Pearl' is the sisters' affectionate nickname for someone - a song which layers sixties psychedelia alongside harmonious "Ooh-oohs", "hey-hays" and a metronomic beat that most bands would kill for.
Listening to the synths on "Like a wave" I get the impression that the sisters were at some stage spinning a few Best Coast records. Angelic and languid harmonies are bridged by two glorious instrumental breaks, the first led by those warming analogue synths, while the second featuring reverbed, surf guitars that I'll be relaxing and playing air-guitar to later. The prominence of the keyboards hints that the pair can compose more than - albeit idyllic - jangly guitar indie tunes.
Sun and surf, babes and beaches are immediately cast aside as the EP draws to a close with the pneumatic "Honey lets go", 2'16" of brutal, no-compromise, garage rock that features hundred-mile per hour vocals that literally rip alongside lo-fi muddied guitar and pulsating percussion so fast that you'd swear the song only actually lasted a good minute or so less than it actually does, so totally breathless is this song.
Listening to the synths on "Like a wave" I get the impression that the sisters were at some stage spinning a few Best Coast records. Angelic and languid harmonies are bridged by two glorious instrumental breaks, the first led by those warming analogue synths, while the second featuring reverbed, surf guitars that I'll be relaxing and playing air-guitar to later. The prominence of the keyboards hints that the pair can compose more than - albeit idyllic - jangly guitar indie tunes.
Sun and surf, babes and beaches are immediately cast aside as the EP draws to a close with the pneumatic "Honey lets go", 2'16" of brutal, no-compromise, garage rock that features hundred-mile per hour vocals that literally rip alongside lo-fi muddied guitar and pulsating percussion so fast that you'd swear the song only actually lasted a good minute or so less than it actually does, so totally breathless is this song.
Now back in the day - when the Muzak Biz's business model was more focused on quantity rather than quality - an album's B side was guaranteed to fill you with dread as you were forced to wade through track after track of filler...Not here though.
"Side B" features yet more top-drawer cuts which is immediately demonstrated by the opener, "Earthquake" and another veritable tour-de-force of swirling keyboards, guitars, percussion and sweet harmonious vocals - the lyrics are somewhat deliciously darker than this jolly, bouncy tune - the song is a perfect bridge from their earlier EP.The sisters follow-up with "My baby boy" and another virtuoso blast of indie-pop - full of effects-laden guitar - that reinvents sixties girl-group pop for post-Millennials.
The teen romance that is "Classroom buzz" sounds like a very-early Go-Go's record (and if you've ever listened to IRS records' shameless cash-in "Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's" will immediately feel at home). Luckily the production values here are a tad higher than the demos and out-takes of the former - there's a welcome return to those swirling keys as guitar and percussion drive the song along at 160 km/h - deliberately Lo-Fi vocals morph into a sweet harmonious refrain to yet another insanely poppy tune... Which you could argue aptly describes the EP's closer "West coast daze." Full of reverbed surfed guitars, solid drums alongside haunting and harmonised "ooh, oohs." There are again hints of early Go-Go's and the most perfect chorus which - while incredibly catchy - hints at a girl whose been wronged on what is the ultimate surf rock anthem.
But I'm saving the best to last (if not chronologically so). "Stray cats" is a beautifully dark and haunting ballad that is heightened by at times languid reverbed guitar and keyboards that heighten the air of melancholy. The slower pace of the song also brings out the best in Kathleen and Chantal's vocals - as a slower number there's more emphasis on the vocal delivery - and the harmonies are absolutely faultless. While both "Side A" and "Side B" ably demonstrate that the sisters have that sixties West-Coast surf-rock meets indie sensibilities off to a tee, it is perhaps "Stray cats" which suggests that the Muscadettes are in it for the long-haul.
There's about seven months between the release dates of "Side A" and this month's release of "Side B" and while the latter is arguably more expansive, listening to both EPs one after the other, they both sound as if they've been crafted from one studio session. The Muscadettes are beginning to make a bit of a noise South of the 49th, especially on the East Coast. Here's hoping they bring their sound to the home of surf-rock - The West Coast.
The Muscadettes
"Side A" (Bandcamp)
"Side B" (Bandcamp)
The teen romance that is "Classroom buzz" sounds like a very-early Go-Go's record (and if you've ever listened to IRS records' shameless cash-in "Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's" will immediately feel at home). Luckily the production values here are a tad higher than the demos and out-takes of the former - there's a welcome return to those swirling keys as guitar and percussion drive the song along at 160 km/h - deliberately Lo-Fi vocals morph into a sweet harmonious refrain to yet another insanely poppy tune... Which you could argue aptly describes the EP's closer "West coast daze." Full of reverbed surfed guitars, solid drums alongside haunting and harmonised "ooh, oohs." There are again hints of early Go-Go's and the most perfect chorus which - while incredibly catchy - hints at a girl whose been wronged on what is the ultimate surf rock anthem.
But I'm saving the best to last (if not chronologically so). "Stray cats" is a beautifully dark and haunting ballad that is heightened by at times languid reverbed guitar and keyboards that heighten the air of melancholy. The slower pace of the song also brings out the best in Kathleen and Chantal's vocals - as a slower number there's more emphasis on the vocal delivery - and the harmonies are absolutely faultless. While both "Side A" and "Side B" ably demonstrate that the sisters have that sixties West-Coast surf-rock meets indie sensibilities off to a tee, it is perhaps "Stray cats" which suggests that the Muscadettes are in it for the long-haul.
There's about seven months between the release dates of "Side A" and this month's release of "Side B" and while the latter is arguably more expansive, listening to both EPs one after the other, they both sound as if they've been crafted from one studio session. The Muscadettes are beginning to make a bit of a noise South of the 49th, especially on the East Coast. Here's hoping they bring their sound to the home of surf-rock - The West Coast.
The Muscadettes
"Side A" (Bandcamp)
"Side B" (Bandcamp)
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