There is a charming element to the music of Brooklyn's Coasting. A two female outfit that marries clean surf guitar and crisp drum sounds to insistent reverberated vocals. "Snoozefest" is anything but, as the spirit of early B-52's (think "52 Girls") is modernized to align more closely with the current purveyors of this sound (Best Coast and The Dum Dum Girls). "Same Old Same Old" ramps up the drum rolls as clean echo-tinged guitar lines lead it up to a full blown cathedral chorus. "What You Wanted" skewers the sound down tremolo twisted avenues, as the vocal sentiment states that "I never wanted to - do you what you wanted to me." Yeah, girls can be cruel sometimes. "Just because you do it to me, doesn't mean I'll do it for free," is both playful wordplay and negotiable terms. "Don't Fight" lays out the rhythm via Mo Tucker tom thump as a spatially enhanced single guitar line glides over top. The lyric "snows fallin' down, and I don't wanna fight tonight" shifts in and out of focus in cascading patterns. It then builds Jesus & Mary Chain style to a dramatic high point and ultimate conclusion. The band plays their record release show at Dead Herring in Brooklyn on September 11. - Dave Cromwell
"Uptempo" and "Pop" are by themselves two concepts that - in the business of being an indie band - can take you quite far; but if on top of that you add to the equation also comparisons to The Smiths, then the hype can get out of control. Brooklyn's Drowners have more than one similarity with Morrisey's act, and although they will surely feel belittled by such comparison, they should not, because no artists really managed to be The Smiths' worthy musical heir yet (like, for example, XTC were for The Beatles, Robin Hitchcock for Syd Barrett, and The Strokes for Lou Reed - uhm, maybe...).
The band's 3 songs debut EP features the remarkable single "Between Us Girls" (streaming below) which immediately throws us back to the days of "Meat is Murder," with the electric guitar alternating between jangly parts and arpeggios, and Welsh frontman Matt Hitt singing semi-melancholically about some girls' hair length - rather than about how big they are... The edge is slightly punkier, while the songwriting reveals an almost clinical concision (the song clocks in just under 2 minutes, with the first chorus coming in after 26" - A&R allergic to intros will dig that).
The second song, "You've Got it All Wrong," beats a similar musical path, tackling the infinite well of inspiration that (for Brits) is life at the pub, with the difference of a slower bridge, which acts as a breather for the final chorus. Final track "A Shell Across the Tongue" is the punkier of the bunch, but also the one with the least memorable melody.
This is obviously a band with enormous songwriting potential. If they'll manage to write songs as good as these and integrate their influences in a more mature and personal sound, the world can be theirs. - PDG
