Oooo, this is good. It’s got a palpable 90s-influenced kinetic energy (think Teenage Fanclub meets Dinosaur Jr. meets Weezer, perhaps?) but with an almost Elliott Smith-like tenderness and a Death Cab-style song structure.
The new EP from Seattle, Washington’s Brace Overjean starts with The Count, which is poppy, fuzzy, shimmery, wistful goodness. It feels like elation, anxiety and depression all at the same time.
Petal Lap follows and takes the pace down a bit, but the songwriting is no less refined. The rhythm section almost swings. There’s a lilt to the melody that makes you sway, and the dreamy, ethereal, shoegaze-esque vocals work perfectly, if a little surprisingly well with it. The gritty guitars that take centre stage at around two-thirds of the way through almost lend the song a Britpop or Oasis-type feel (the combination of arpeggio and feedback at around the 2:10 mark sounds like it could’ve been lifted from Definitely Maybe).
The third song, “All I Know,” introduces a jaunty piano. As it rumbles along, you realise, not for the first time in this short EP, that the soft vocals feel almost at odds with the energetic instrumentation. But for some reason, it works. It’s a unique combination of styles that’s difficult to compare to anything else, and that in itself is incredibly exciting.
This band are definitely one to watch. Mark our words.
Written by Kinda Grizzly
