She will have her revenge

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She will have her revenge

April 19th 2006 03:57

Crazy DJ Dudes

It is every indie elitist's wet dream to discover a band before everyone else, or at least when they're in their EP stage ie. before they release their first full-length album. While I assure my readers that I am in fact not an elitist of any kind, as an avid music collector, I am able to say that this has happened twice to me. The two bands, "She Wants Revenge" and "Tigercity," are both good examples of the complexity that is indie rock. I will focus on She Wants Revenge today, and leave Tigercity for tomorrow.

While I wasn't very intrigued by their EP, my first listening of their first album was slightly more positive. Through the use of drum machines, monotonal vocals and unimaginative guitar riffs, She Wants Revenge have managed to recreate the 80s in the early 21st century with a style and fashion thats undeniable. As much as I appreciate uniquess, originality and some form of variety, I have to say that I am in favour of this particular bands' inability to create multitonal melodies of any sort. The opening track, "Red Flags and Long Nights" sets the pace for the rest of the album, which many would describe as boring, but yet enough people seem to like in order to make it a hit.

Why they in particular are not a hit as yet, the trail they are following is. There was something about She Wants Revenge that I recognised but couldn't pinpoint, a genre they belonged to that was void of any counterparts. Then, while beginning to write this entry, I discovered it:

"She Wants Revenge are either the greatest tribute band in the history of music, or the biggest pranksters since Spinal Tap. The impression is so dead-on, I can't help thinking that it might have been intended as something of a prank: if two DJs can replicate such a distinctive sound with such precision on a whim, what does that say about bands who devote their entire careers to following so slavishly in the footsteps of others?"

She Wants Revenge on the Town

That quote was from an internet review of the album by Tim O'Neill (see link at the bottom), and his point is spot on. However, who is their impression based upon? The first relation O'Neill attributes the band to is Interpol, which I ashamedly have to say that I have no really affinity with, despite the fact that everyone else in the world seems to. Nevertheless, the second link I fully understand and appreciate - She Wants Revenge are musical clones of none other than the monotonal, apocalyptic band that is Joy Division, the musical revolutionaries that became infamous for their song, "Love Will Tear Us Apart." While the droning sound quality so common in the 80s puts me off traditional Joy Division songs, O'Neill makes the point that even the song titles on the album are very reminiscent of Joy Division songs, "Tear You Apart," being an eerily similar one.

Nevertheless, to give "She Wants Revenge" some credit (and to stop this entry to be a simple reiterance of O'Neill's review), the album does take some sharp turns away from the Joy Division model. While retainin the monotonal vocals, the third track "I Don't Want to Fall in Love" brings to the genre melodies and instrumental usage that reminds me of a heavy rave, a good mix even if I am not a usual fan of the dance scene. Songs like "Monologue" continue this fashion, that has the potential to create a fan of rave and trance music out of me. She Wants Revenge is definitely worth a try, even a little, and fans of (the first) Joy Division will either fall in love with She Wants Revenge, or be heartbroken by their massacre of the 80s.

Links:

Official Site - The site is a good indicator of their motive behind lyrics - sex, love and betrayal.

Tim O'Neill's Review - iwillnotgetsuediwillnotgetsued...

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She will have her revenge

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