This is the CD that Garbage has been trying to make for a couple of years now -- spooky, atmospheric, slightly grungy, slightly unhinged pop music with a no-bullshit girl singer from the UK. And what more could you ask for in a band, really? Catchy songs? Check. Sexy voice? Check. Bad attitude? Check. Cover art featuring a woman's hand holding a lit candle with wax dripping down her arm and a skeevy looking guy with no shirt, spiky hair, shiny pants and a tongue ring, licking the candle flame? Check.
Tricky's Angels with Dirty Faces comes to mind when listening to many of these tracks. It must be the claustrophobic atmosphere and the highly detailed, fast-moving musical moods that the band creates. Anne Reekie doesn't have quite the same spooky obsessiveness as Tricky, but she does have her own particular "I may or may not be a psycho so sleep with at least one eye open" quality, which works quite well with the darker, heavier tracks.
"Right Out and Forced" is probably the most Garbage-like track on the disc. It has a cheeseball drum machine in the background, weirdly restrained-but-ready-to-blow vocals and a terrific chorus. "Risk" is one of the prettier tracks; Reekie's vocals are dramatic but honest sounding, the drums are un-rocky and the guitars are simple and lovely. It's a quiet, powerful song.
"Better Gaze than Fear" is very Bjork-like, with its spoken word intro, up-front vocals and stream of conscious lyrics. A lesser band would surely crash and burn if it tried to pull off a tune like "A Man"; the vocals are totally exposed for most of the song, with just a simple bass line, quiet drums and spare guitar and organ parts to support it. Fiel Garvie pulls it off, though, thanks in large part to the band's subtle, restrained playing.
It's obvious why the band released "Glass Faced Warrior" as a single: it really gives their best qualities a chance to shine. The song has a great chorus, complex but subtle and atmospheric music, intriguing lyrics and another terrific vocal performance by Reekie.
You probably haven't heard of Fiel Garvie yet -- I know that I hadn't -- but I think that we'll be hearing a lot more about them soon. !Vuka Vuka! sounds great, its songs are strong and strange and the performances are outstanding. It's really worth a listen.
|
