poppedmusic

Alive

Released 27th October 2014

Words: Sean Regan

UK Rock band Glass Caves release their debut album Alive on Rough Trade and show us it’s not all grim up North in the town of Pontefract. Four years going from busking the streets to touring the clubs around the country have given the band time to develop a polished and assured sound, somewhere between the synth-rock of the early noughties and the tight vocal harmony pop from today. The result is a very catchy affair, kicking off with the single Go which sets the tone for the first half of the album; big keys/guitars, intense drumming and a heap of fuzzy effects to stop the pop melodies from getting too sweet.
Driving Home and Why Stay both start with some very tasty harmonised vocal riffs from the band. This is all very hooky stuff, but it does make the tracks sound a bit samey when played one after another. The tight vocal riffs make yet another appearance on Out of Control which makes things sound a little too similar to the previous two tracks, but the super catchy chorus and shredding guitar solo make this the standout track for me. All three of the tracks are the kind of dance floor bangers you’d hope for from a band like this, but it might have been nice to mix in one of the different sounding tracks which feature later on the album, to break things up. Tonight sees the synths and guitars pick up the melodies with another big chorus thrown in to bring the dance floor filler section of the album to a close.
Things calm down a bit by track 6 with Break Out”which provides a nice contrast from the balls to the wall approach of the previous tracks. It brings to mind the Temper Trap’s Sweet Disposition with its overlapping delayed guitars and anthemic chorus, but with a rougher edge and some big fat synths thrown in for good measure. The swing beats of “

Listen to Go here:

http://youtu.be/LnCOy2nW5S8