ALBUM REVIEWS
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ALBUM REVIEWS |
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The Hundred in the Hands
THE HUNDRED IN THE HANDS WARP 20.09.10 @www.vanguard-online.co.uk
The Hundred in the Hands are Eleanore Everdell and Jason Grant Friedman, a duo from Brooklyn who came together over their shared love of early hip hop, French house and disco, ska and dub, post-punk, British invasion mod and 60s-80s girl pop. This self-titled debut album is as eclectic as their music taste, providing a little something for everyone. Everdell’s soft and sometimes flirty vocals and lavish synths are cleverly combined with Friedman’s catchy drum beats and guitar lines that vary from the complex to the effortlessly simple. ‘Young Aren’t Young’ opens simply and one would be forgiven for thinking it could be a track from The XX, then it evolves into disco influenced pop. In ‘Lovesick (Once again)’ Everdell’s soft vocals (reminiscent of Karen O) perfectly matched to the pounding guitars of the chorus, whereas ‘Killing It’ is more of a conversational track, matched to dreamy synths and programmed beats. The tracks easily segue despite the different styles - ‘Pigeons’ is a harmony soaked number with a chorus not dissimilar to the work of Ladyhawke, ‘Dead Ending’ is filled with chiming guitars and high pitched vocals. ‘Gold Blood’ is a stronger track, filled with rawer guitars, more riffs and a more powerful vocal. ‘Dressed in Dresden’ is probably the standout rack of the album. It opens with a pulsating guitar and I can imagine dancing away to this in some grotty indie dive somewhere. The Hundred in the Hands combine a multitude of music genres and styles and sounds yet somehow it works, with the tracks moving smoothly from one to another. It’s hard to pin down who Everdell reminds me of –her high pitched, beautifully harmonised vocals are sometimes dreamy (generally filled throughout with just the right amount of ennui), ethereal and breathy (à la Jane Birkin styley) but also have the capacity to be forceful should the track require it. Whatever the style, they blend perfectly with the disco/ dub/ synth pop (if that is even a type) created by Friedman. Yeah, it could be dubbed boy/girl disco pop but - so what? It’s about time there was another cool band from Brooklyn. www.thehundredinthehands.com |
