People love to judge a book by its cover. Well, at least I do anyway. And as far as covers go, bands have a rich one, from their name to their names, their hair to their dress. A band’s image can define them, their fan base and eventually the shows they play and the music they make. If Marilyn Manson sang about sunshine daydreams it would be weird. If the Polyphonic Spree suddenly came out with songs about rape, murder and animal cruelty (i.e. “Killing Bunnies For The Fun Of It”) the world would just be a fucked up place. But I digress.
Darker My Love. Great. Another post-punk heavy-on-the-emo rock band, best appreciated in dark solitude on a lonely Friday night. Right? Wrong. Dead wrong. While their name is derived from a punk song of the same name (by TSOL), their music is bright, melodic and accessible. Their 2010 album, Alive As You Are, is a perfect backdrop to the oncoming autumn season. Breezy laid back vocals, hip-hopping folk beats, and spatial-yet-crunch guitar riffs fuse a fun foliage drive soundtrack that sounds like a throwback to early 60’s folk psychedelia.
Album opener “Backseat” opens with finger-licking pickings that sound like Canadian folkers, The Acorn, and in comes the rest of the crew, switching between something like Clapton’s “Lay Down Sally” and Cream’s “Strange Brew.” Much like much of the album, “New America” could be a lost Beatles B-side. Seriously.
But despite Darker’s early psychedelic influences, they’re still entrenched in musical modernity. Songs like “18th Street” and “Trail the Line” are more contemporary sounding indie rock pieces with a twinge of the throwback folksy feel that they’ve nailed down so well. Although just about everything here has been done before, it’s nice to know one of the most influential times in modern music history is still being appreciated and better yet built upon.
For more information on Darker My Love check out their official website, MySpace, Facebook, and follow them on Twitter. Get Alive As You Are now on iTunes!