Palma Violets - '180'
Palma Violets: Will Doyle (Drums), Chilli Jesson (Bass/Vocals), Sam Fryer (Guitar/Vocals), Pete Mayhew (Keyboards)
Palma Violets have only been kicking around for a couple of years, and the London quartet’s first release, 180, is definitely one worth hearing. The band have seemingly meshed grungy, washed out guitar, punk-style drums, plodding surf bass, 80’s post-punk vocals and both modern and classic keyboard to create an aural experiment that has paid off!
The sound combines elements of indie, garage, psychedelic and post-punk to create a unique blend. In doing this they create songs that are rarely boring; with often unique song structures that seem to follow the ‘story’ in the song, rather than a traditional song structure. There are occasions (Johnny Bagga’ Donuts) where this fails them and a song feels disjointed.
If you’re ever stuck in traffic during sunset, or taking a scenic drive; this could definitely be the album for you. The melancholic vibe captured on many songs, like Last of the Summer Wine, could easily create the perfect background for one of those timeless moments. The grungy feel of the whole thing and the combination of different “styled” instruments to great ambience is absolutely amazing. The only issue with this is that it creates a distinct lack of dynamic and sometimes even ‘punch’; what this means is that you could walk away feeling like there wasn’t many stand out tracks.
But this doesn’t matter! After 2-3 listens you’ll find yourself
sing along on the more anthem-ic tracks, 14,
and pressing repeat on other great tracks like Tom the Drum, Chicken Dippers and I Found Love.
The blend of different musical elements will often lead to reminiscence of a wide range of artists including (but not limited to) The Doors, Joy Division, The Clash, Ramones and even more modern bands like Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes. Whether this is your style of music or not, you must give them a chance!
7.5/10
Sean Coffey
Palma Violets - Last of the Summer Wine (Official Music Video)
