Review by Ella Kaill
Beaches: ‘Second of Spring’ (LP)
Out now on from Bandcamp
Beaches are your new favourite (Australian) five-piece. They’ve toured domestically and abroad, played with Deerhunter, Best Coast and a plethora of other established artists, and their self-titled debut album was cited as one of the 100 Best Australian albums. Not convinced? Released on September 8th of this year, monster double album ‘Second of Spring’ features 17 tracks of swirling, dirty psych-rock that speak for themselves.
‘Void’ is the single with an unforgiving momentum that doesn’t let the listener pause for breath. Echoing vocals wrap themselves around sharp guitar riffs and an unrelenting bass rhythm propels the entire movement forward. The track continues to build and drags us along for the ride, too.
‘When You’re Gone’ and ‘Arrow’ offer sweet vocals woven among earthy distortion, whereas ‘Wine’ and ‘Contact’ are haunting and submerge the listener in rich, droopy chords. Though the tracks vary in tone and mood, the pace of the album remains largely upbeat.
Beaches have a knack for unremitting extended tracks. The staunch power in these epic pieces drives the album onwards with such a force that it’s easy to forget that this is a double album. A quiet confidence lies in the craft – and rightly so. Every track belongs; one would not have a hard time guessing that any one of these songs was a Beaches song. ‘Second of Spring’ proves that Beaches have honed their style and can churn out sound of colossal heights.
This album is as tenacious as it is mellow. Layered melodies swallow you up, and heavy, droning riffs spit you back out. Electrifying intoxication.
