The High & Lonesome
The High & Lonesome
June 26 2014 (self release)
6.5/10
Words: Alison Mack
This is a curious one. The Sydney five-piece describe their influences as being the likes of The Smiths, INXS, Joy Division, Nick Cave amongst others, and indeed, that is a fact not hard to gather. Each of the six tracks on this debut EP at times sound much in the style of one or other of those named: 'A Beautiful Mind' (Nick Cave), 'Elegantly Wasted' (The Smiths), 'The Line You Drew' (Joy Division), and so on. And that in itself may be the drawback for The High & Lonesome: a band still in need of finding their own identity.
That said, there is something rather compelling about Alex Dew's almost sppech vocal that digs down deep into the boots in tone - very much along the lines of Nick Cave, of our own Tim Hickox. The lengthy (six minutes-plus) 'A Beautiful Mind' is the standout, and one that will either keep you gripped to the end (especially around the five-minute mark) - or screaming for release.
Lyrically, like a Leonard Cohen or the work of the aforementioned Hickox, the songs are oft poetic and particularly wordy, for example on 'Elegantly Wasted': "A wayward storm/of misty peaks/the city sleeps/Stripped of form/praying for an answer/amongst the lies"; or "Well I ventured valleys entangled wild/Where fated death had struck a child/I survived oceans and flowing streams/Whose intended target was to shatter my dreams" from 'Superstitious Needs'.
It will be interesting to hear what The High & Lonesome offer next, as this first EP holds interest, if not a clear picture of the band themselves.
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