The Sea The Sea - Four Demos EP
 |
| The Sea The Sea - Four Demos EP |
Oh I do love it when new bands
get in touch at the very start of their journey, it's so much more exciting
than getting a nice tidy package from a PR company. Oxford's The Sea The Sea
are one such band, possibly named after the Iris Murdoch novel but I prefer to
think of it as the excited yelps of a city dwelling 6 year old on their first
visit to the British coastline on a grey, uninspiring day. Having amassed just
two live performances and a handful of positive reviews, The Sea The Sea are
taking their first musical steps the old fashioned way by just getting the
music right and not concentrating on any of the tempting frills. This
collection of tunes kicks off with the sparse but urgent indie of the 'The
Winter Parade' which brings to mind Editors, British Sea Power or Young Knives
with its rattling bass lines, carefully selected guitars and fragile but honest
vocal performances. There is a very British bleakness about this tune in a
'it's always darkest before the dawn' kind of way that forces hope and despair
in to the same head space in a way that tugs at the heartstrings. 'Waterfall'
is a more gentle, calm-after-the-storm type of song which has elements of Gene
or my current favourites The B Of The Bang. The crashing guitars of the
crescendo and cymbal heavy drums wash over you like sea spray on a bitter sea
front in January - bracing, refreshing and cleansing. Final track 'Something
Happened' has a slightly more 1980s feel to it and can surely only be played by
men holding their guitars at nipple height, such is the tightness and brevity
of the guitar work. This is wonderfully British Indie in its best form with
deadpan delivery, melodies used but not overused, songs charged with emotion
and the promise of even better things to come. The Sea The Sea are still
finding their feet but like a baby who goes from crawling to walking within a
few seconds there is a hint of genius surrounding this music.
More information: http://theseatheseaband.tumblr.com/