If
the guitar band is dying, nobody has told IT GIRL, an all-caps (both in name
and in sound) group of Glaswegians who together craft music akin to smashing
Interpol and Arcade Fire into a rather loud blender. Their debut release, the
schizophrenic Neon Signs, is seven
tracks long and free-as-in-beer direct from the band’s own site.
They
take the dance-rock formula - as many syncopated hi-hats as they can get away
with, mixed equally with angular, crunchy guitars and a droney,
voice-as-instrument singer - and use it to great effect in creating the
self-titled opener. Guitars layer over one another almost as though jostling
for space in a relentless musical onslaught, as a Paul Banks-esque monotone
snarls over the top.
The
star of the record is unquestionably the jarring lead guitar. Although sticking
religiously to a time signature, it provides a great contrast to the droning
undertones of both the bass and its rhythm counterpart. Victim to the Clock is a perfect example; it contains more riffs
than would be otherwise advisable, and simultaneously has a great deal of
diversity.
The
same can be said about the record as a whole. Firelight begins almost like an indie-rock classic before piercing
drums pull its tone right back into foot-tapping territory. Human Touch is the aural equivalent of a
wasp bike - buzzy and snarly with incessantly brooding vocals.
Followed and Found is perhaps an odd
choice of closer - it sounds arguably how Two Door Cinema Club would, had they
targeted fans of Joy Division instead of teenage girls. It successfully
attempts to be dark and angsty and, at the same time, eerily upbeat.
The
group won’t be to everyone’s taste - there is only so much of the deep monotone
most can take. But this isn’t solely about the voice; this experiments
with how far a band can push the boundaries of post-punk revival, dabbling in
trails previously blazed by highly successful bands past. It is certainly an
enjoyable, and deviously diverse, half-hour of music.
Neon
Signs by IT GIRL is out now and available from their Bandcamp page.
JS
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