All it takes is 3 chords and a dream!

Monday, September 29, 2008

CD Review: The Smith Bros. - Restless


The Smith Bros. - Restless
2008, The Smith Bros.


The Smith Bros. have a love of melodic power-pop with big hooks and great harmonies. Their sound is reminiscent of 1970's AM music and 1980's pop rock. They've been compared to Teenage Fanclub and Fountains Of Wayne, although there would appear to be strong influences here from The Beatles to Van Morrison to a host of 1980's Brit-Pop bands. On 2008's Restless, The Smith Bros. offer up 14 melodic gems.

How Wrong You Are is a jangly rocker that could almost be a Gin Blossoms tune. She's Under My Skin is a silly little love song in the British tradition with big harmonies in the chorus and a memorable melody. Restless opens with an American influenced guitar hook and resolves into a strong harmony-based gem. Other highlights include the guitar-heavy Every Day Gets Better, You Did It All, Indecision and My Great Regret.

If the Everly Brothers came up through the musical ranks twenty years later and were from Britain, they might sound quite a lot like The Smith Bros. (who are from Ohio, by the by). Restless is full of memorable melodies, soaring harmonies and hooks galore. This may be one of the most sonically pleasing recordings of 2008, even if it probably isn't quite hip enough to have significant radio impact. The Smith Bros. are a band to respect and appreciate and go see live as many times as you can. Restless is a little sample for home listening and comes highly recommended.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about The Smith Bros. at www.myspace.com/thesmithbrosmusic. Restless is a forthcoming release. Keep checking The Smith Bros. MySpace page for release dates and purchase information.

2 comments:

WEB SHERIFF said...

WEB SHERIFF
Protecting Your Rights on the Internet
Tel 44-(0)208-323 8013
Fax 44-(0)208-323 8080
websheriff@websheriff.com
www.websheriff.com

Hi Wildy,

On behalf of Exile Productions and Exile Publishing, many thanks for plugging Van Morrison and, for your readers’ info, up-to-the-minute news on Van’s latest album - Keep It Simple - and 2008 shows is, of course, available on www.vanmorrison.com and www.myspace.com/vanmorrison and, for a limited period, you can still see Van's exclusive BBC sessions at http://www.bbc.co.uk/musictv/vanmorrison/video/ . We’re also pleased to announce that an increasing archive of exclusive film footage of Van Morrison performances has now been made available for fans on Exile’s official YouTube channel at http://uk.youtube.com/user/OfficialExileFilms .

Thanks again for your support.

Regards,

WEB SHERIFF

Max Wj said...

The Smith Bros. - Restless: one of the best showcase of pop songs i ever heard in the last months ... nice melodies, slow and rock music: they take everything you need from a good pop music ... really amazing!!!
I'm glad to own that album in my favorite radio airplay space ...