Saturday, 24th May, 2008
Alice Rock: "Yesterday's Makeup"
Rock Records UK
This is one of the best local bands I’ve heard since the Rutherfords. A two-piece from Nottingham, Alice Rock is snotty sneering and guitar shredding Alice and the relentless ka-thwacking drum boy Tabby. Yesterday’s Makeup is a tough cookie to say the least, and it takes repeated listening to really adjust to the unique tone of the LP. It’s more than worth it, however, and you know what they say: cookies crumble, and those crumbs can be awfully tasty.
The amount of influence on this album is astounding. Alive Rock boast all sorts of inspiration from many different music factions - particularly of the eighties indie scenes. Fans of the Cure will appreciate the eerie guitar echoing effective in parts of the first leg of the disc, and obsessed followers of the US underground SST scene will recognise the authentic D.I.Y feel which prevails in the latter tracks. “Rockstar’z Chick” is a great blend of everything with a take on Sonic Youth’s Daydream Nation/Goo period intensity but with more upbeat overtones, whereas “Kissing in a Campervan” is the sexier, rockier alternative. They’re a universal band to say the least; powerful chorus explosions in standouts such as “Mail Order Bride” will please pop-punkers from Chicago to Japan, and the more complex of arrangements, for example the delightful guitar solos in “Dot Com Women” will impress even the most uptight of technical music snobs.
Placing aside all the wild, unpredictable aspects of this record, there’s so much more going on in terms of lyrics and themes. Satirising the e-stalker generation with amazing panache and humour, “And I happen to love you too, man this is easy, he believes me”, Alice’s tongue-in-cheek style of writing both brings a tear to your eye and at the same time remembers to refrain from being overly dramatic. “I Call The Tune”, a piano kissed acoustic ditty, is a more serious example of what Alice Rock are capable of. Lathered in a mood of exasperation, earnest lines such as “Alice, you’re so fucking naive”, provide both catharsis and comfort, without making the mistake of exhausting it. “Wonderland” sums up the main theme of youth's apparent and supposed naiveté, and sets the stage for the firework theatrical of a closer, “Runway”: “you’ve got to take me back, to wonderland...” Get it?
Pure gold.
