20 Apr 2024
Glass Owls - Out From The Darkness Album Review
08 Jul 2014 // A review by tonymcdonald
“Let’s take the Road - down memory lane”, is a key line from the second song on the Glass Owls – Out From The Darkness album and it sums the album up perfectly.
The Glass Owls are brilliant, and remind me of a combination of Echo and the Bunnymen from the 80’s and the House of Love from the 90’s. The vocals by Tomas Nelson are so warm and rich, calm and strong, very Julian Cope, especially on Out From The Darkness (Google him you need to). If you need a more modern reference Arctic Monkeys would be fairly close, especially in the vocal department. Sorry I can’t help making references to other bands. Blur and Franz Ferdinand are other bands that spring to mind. Therefore in essence the Glass Owls are not totally original, but are a modern take on some historical classics.
Christopher Pearce’s Bunnymen style bass lines keep the pace of the album upbeat and powerful, Apathy is a great example of what I am talking about.
The lyrics are strong and the structures of the songs are fairly typical indie rock. No great surprises here, which will assist them in achieving some radio success if they pursue this avenue.
The guitar is very retro in sound effects and doesn’t overpower the album. Some great riffs and powerful sounds that compliments the vocals perfectly.
I recommend that you download the album from here: https://glassowls.bandcamp.com/
Buy it, buy it, buy it.
Have you bought it yet?
Out From The Darkness
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About Glass Owls
Produced by up and coming whiz kid Dave Parker, “Dead Love” is a collection of their very best songs and suggests a band that is wise beyond their years. The songs are provided with much more depth than the already stellar versions which have delighted audiences. “Griffin Boy” is a dirty guttural track in the vein of classic garage rock, “I’ll Be Waiting”, a soaring anthem with beatific harmonies. “No Avail”, the debut single, is a blistering ode to unrequited love, “Nothing Personal (Just You)” contains some formidable guitar work from Metcalf and an impassioned vocal from Nelson. “Sarah” is their most well known song and sounds better than ever here with one of the great clarinet induced changes in music well preserved and, finally, “Summer Girl” is a romantic love letter flipped on its head with some timely feedback. These six songs all deserve a place in the New Zealand music canon and may just be there in a few years, fighting for space with “Not Given Lightly” and “Give it a Whirl”.
It could be argued that Glass Owls are one of the hardest working bands in the country. Formed in Howick, Auckland in 2007 as “Three Kings” (later “The Collection” before landing on their current name), they have been tirelessly touring ever since at venues as diverse as Cassette 9, Juice Bar, The Kings Arms, Rising Sun, The Dog’s Bollix, New Zealand Fashion Week 2009, Barnstock and The Wine Cellar. They have also appeared on 95bFM’s Fancy New Band Show and Balcony TV. In 2009, they recorded an extremely popular Red Bull Live Studio Session and their song “Sarah” was featured on Remix Magazine’s “Indie Remix CD”. It is their catchy tunes and energetic live shows which have allowed them to carve a name for themselves in the extremely competitive Auckland music scene. The lineup has remained unchanged in all positions with the exception of their drummer. Fans need not fear however as Allan appears to be in it for the long haul.
Visit the muzic.net.nz Profile for Glass Owls
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