Review Summary: An honest, fun and self-aware tribute to old rock and roll.
When The Preatures released EP
Is This How You Feel? and rose to the spotlight of some Australian radio stations, one got the feeling that with the simplistic lyrics and general boldness, they were to walk one of two paths: either they'd shortly rise to the status of best Aussie pop-rock band of the decade so far, or the hype surrounding their defining song would die after a full-length release. That remains to be seen, but in 2014 Manfredi and co managed not only to keep the pace, but also to add style and charm to the scene.
When Manfredi declares "whatever you want, I'll give it to you" in aptly titled
Whatever You Want, well, then what else could we ask for? Blue Planet Eyes is the obvious successor that anyone who listened to last year's EP could wish for, which makes this an incredibly assertive album. Here the band ins't trying to create a classic, and instead focus on making enjoyable and accessible music. Ultimately, what The Preatures want with Blue Planet Eyes is to solidify their career as a pop-rock band that is flexible enough to draw comparisons to Fleetwood Mac, but at the same time solid enough to become something of their own in the long run - and this they're already accomplishing.
At the very least, it's an original, straightforward album. Opener
Blue Planet Eyes is soothing and atmospheric, contrasting with bombastic follow-up
Somebody's Talking, which sets the feel of most of the album. Already during the opener it's clear that Thomas Champion, the band's bassist, does a great job as he guides most of the songs with keen ability. Guitars spring all around, but never once overwhelming. In fact one of the best things in the LP is the interplay of bass and guitar, so that at times when the guitars are explosive, the bass lines taking the background scene remain distinguishable. And this added to Isabella Manfredi's warm, clear vocals sets electrifying tones to songs like
Ordinary,
Whatever You Want and
Cruel, along with a sense of softness.
With songs like
It Gets Better and
Rock And Roll Rave, the band creates a heavier scenery, perfectly fit to become crowd anthems in future concerts. The latter of these two sees the band playing with a more dense setting and instrumental tricks, at times cut by funky guitar play. There's also softer tracks, like
Two Tone Melody, where we see a melancholic Isabella superbly reach her full vocal potential as she sings about platonic love. The band closes the album with perhaps the most personal song yet,
Business, Yeah, where we are greeted by airy instrumentation and then suddenly the song is cut short.
Overall, Blue Planet Eyes is a very fun album that pays tribute to old 80's rock 'n roll without being overly referential. It's also interesting that the band put so much heartache into the lyrics while mostly working with joyful tunes. Recorded in Texas with Spoon's Jim Eno, the album is very well crafted, even if spanning little more than half an hour. But that is for the better since it makes the songs here all the more accessible than they already are, which hopefully will see this band reach higher than ever before. And that could hardly become a disappointment.
