Amelia
A Long, Lovely List of Repairs
Slow Down Records
6/10
I had a cup of tea the other day, and it definitely wasn’t this, but I liked this anyway. I listened the whole way through without being bathed in boredom once. The vocals are very soothing, borderline eerie at points which adds some great flavor to the subtle musical background. One thing I really enjoy is the moods they are able to create musically. This isn’t your pop-punk singing about how their heart split into two pieces and with one last breathe they tell you how much of a pussy they are, thus confirming why you broke up with them in the first place. This is music that actually portrays the mood that the singer is describing. It doesn’t inspire you to turn into a spastic ninja doing spin kicks in the pit while you cry. It is very somber throughout the entire album, which may actually be its downfall. It lacks even a hit of energy. Many of the songs sound very similar and their style is kept from song to song almost blending themselves together as a larger piece of music. They seemed to take the safe road in keeping to what they know they can do, but even though they do it well a little variety wouldn’t hurt. I wouldn’t be surprised if Amelia was to show up as background to movies or land an elusive ending credit here and there, but I wouldn’t expect to see them playing anywhere other than coffee shops and lounge bars anytime soon.
By Sean Pullin