Duchess Says: Begging The 3 Ts EP
Duchess Says release the Begging The 3 Ts EP
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Wednesday, 20, May 2009 02:00
Back Yard, Out May 25th.
In a nutshell...
Catchy. Loud. Electric. Heavy. Relentless.
What's it all about?
Following a number of small-scale releases, Duchess Says are starting to hack their way through the synth-punk scene with their brand of self-titled "moog rock". This release is the first to have gained much momentum in the UK.
Who's it by?
This is a bit of a weird one. They formed in 2003 off the back of the Church of Budgerigars, which the four of them were members of. Annie-Claude takes the vocals, guitar and keytar, with Ismael, Phil and Simon Says also contributing in a number of ways to the unique mix of music. They're far beyond normality when it comes to their approach to music, though this interesting package seems to have the legs to go the distance.
They've toured with Sonic Youth, the Gossip, Dinosaur Jr and Depeche Mode, too. That's a rubber stamp of approval almost immediately.
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
It's hard to see them even registering on the radar on the big stage, though I'm sure they'll quite happily agree that this isn't what they're aiming for anyway.
What the others say
"Given the overtly sweet nature of the majority of indie rock coming out of Canada, Duchess Says is an incredible breath of fresh air that delivers the kind of four-on-the-floor, fire-on-all-cylinders post-punk that NYC used to hand out as its calling card before vice culture made its way into the neighbourhood and started raising the property value of the Bowery." - Ron Hart, PopMatters, on a previous release
"[Annie-Claude's] unrestrained raspy groans and growls are the centre of attention even when caught in the storm of distorted noise on the caustic Ccut Up or leading the synth-rock charge as Black Flag bashes its way into the club." - Remix Mag
So is it any good?
When you first start listening to this, you begin to draw parallels with other bands almost immediately. The best conclusion for it seems to be a thoroughly depressed or grunge-influenced Gary Numan. It's dark, heavy, loud and brooding.
It's actually pretty good, particularly if you value loudness over melody, as there's plenty of that in this EP.
Black Flag, the opening track which was part of Duchess Says' album Anthologie des 3 Perchoirs last year, is the kind of track you can see all-round pit of despair Lady GaGa listening to for inspiration, while she's busy taking covert photos of Christina Aguilera for which clothes to wear next. It's upbeat and could slot into any club across the country and be a hit, especially if they got the strobe lighting on the go.
There's a strange charm to the song - it uses a very basic synthesised bass and layers all manner of electronic beats over the top. Annie-Claude's voice is great too, doing well to accentuate the keyboard's melody.
It's not entirely original though; many people will see a lot to like in this song, perhaps because of its similarity to a lot of other tunes. The unnecessary crackle of feedback doesn't do much for later parts of the song, but it's a solid effort.
Ccut Up takes a different approach, sounding like Kraftwerk orchestrating a horror soundtrack for an Eli Roth teen slasher. It starts off slow and melancholy but ramps up the speed after about 45 seconds, dropping a heavy guitar and drums into the mix along with their trademark synth. It's quick, relentless and yet Annie-Claude saves the day again with her fabulous vocals.
This is the track to get if you only have one to choose; it has the most mainstream approach out of the four available and is a great way to evaluate the band before going for the more unique approach they offer.
Rabies (Baby's Got The) is a strange tune and one of the less impressive efforts. With vocals muted behind electric distortion, the music can be very repetitive, aside for the ambulance siren-like refrain which pops up every now and again. With the more melodic side of things revoked, it becomes quite incessant.
I've Got The Flu feels like something out of a space-based drama. Its slow, strange approach works well for much of the song but you're left feeling a bit empty inside, particularly towards the end. Not so much due to its inability to fulfil the desires of the listener, but more in that it sounds pretty bleak. I'm going to avoid any obvious jokes about swine flu, even if the title of the tune seems less dramatic than the rest of the music.
You won't be able to listen to this band for long spells as Duchess Says never really give you the chance to gather your thoughts or, sometimes, think clearly. Not that this is a bad thing, though this factor will certainly split audiences down the middle.
That said, Ccut Up alone is a great song. You never know; listen to that and you may get into this unique brand of music quite easily.
7/10
Matt Gardner