Album Review :: The Vacant Lots - Departure

The Vacant Lots

Departure

June 30 2014 (Sonic Cathedral)

7.5/10

Words: Andy Runacres

Hailing from Burlington, Vermont, The Vacant Lots are a duo (Jared Artaud – vocals, guitars, drones and Brian MacFadyen – drums, vocals, electronics) who create a psych tinged, drone-drenched garage rock sound that is much larger than their numbers would suggest.

'Departure', their debut album, is released on Sonic Cathedral, a label who are well versed in the Vacant Lots genre having been releasing some of the best around over the last 10 years; given that, they have found their natural home.  The album is produced by regular Sonic Cathedral collaborator and ex-Spacemen 3 member Sonic Boom and contains additional work from label mate and ex-Galaxie 500 member Dean Wareham, whom they have supported on tours in the USA.  With just this information to hand you must admit a fairly interesting package is presented. So does the music back it up?

The album opens with lead single 'Mad Mary Jones', with electronic stabs to set you on your way before pounding drums then enter the arena and howling guitars ensure you are in for an adrenalin fuelled ride through their signature psych and drone garage rock sound.  'Never Satisfied' sounds like the best thing Spiritualised never released, featuring languorous riffs, druggy sounding vocals and playing out with backwards guitars.  The jaunty 'Tomorrow' - with guitar work  from Dean Wareham - keeps the pace up, before the strung out 'Paint This City' slows things right down with its dream-like qualities.

'Before The Evening's Thru' combines The Black Angels with the Velvet Underground’s 'All Tomorrow’s Parties' to outstanding effect.  If you’ve had one of those frenetic dreams where chaos reigns and you wake feeling absolutely shattered, you have experienced the next song, '6AM' which ups the adrenalin level, combining harsh, hard percussion with staccato guitar riffs creating chaotic tension; the song always feeling like it’s about to fall apart but somehow staying together to the end. The Velvets sound returns for “Make The Connection”, which coming in at just under ten minutes could drag, but due to the music, which builds and builds and the spoken word story telling vocal, it manages to keep you attentive to the end.  The end is what comes next as they return to the familiar psych vocals and guitar riffs for the album closer 'Do Not Leave Me Now', and to be honest after 37 minutes of 'Departure', you probably don’t want them to leave either.

Whilst their influences are abundantly obvious, from The Velvet Underground, through Spacemen 3 and The Black Angels to The Brian Jonestown Massacre (who, incidentally, they are supporting on their upcoming UK tour), The Vacant Lots manage to rise above them and create a debut album of great promise. The money is on whether they can carry this album off live. If they can, this could be one hell of a show worth making the effort to see.