By John Bedard
I love debut releases. I find that it is when bands tend to be their most honest. Before things get over produced, before people are talking trash online, before the fairytale melts into reality. This EP is very raw in the best way. It still has that recorded in the garage feel. There is a passion that so many bands tend to lose later on.
There are a few aspects of this album that give me a The Mamas & The Papas vibe – if they were stripped down to bare essentials and made punk. Honestly, it is probably a bad comparison to draw but it is where my brain is stuck. They have that late ‘60s tone, particularly in the guitar tone. My guess would be fat single coils through an overdriven Vox or Vox-style amp. It is a great tone, especially when put over the more modern drum arrangements it is a wonderful mix of old and modern. Once you add in the vocals it is hard not to love this EP. There is what sounds like a very intention compression on the vocals that really has that 1960s mic sound to it. The effect is done really well too. I would not be surprised if they actually used old microphones as I rarely hear that tone duplicated this well using modern microphones and processing. The combination of these elements makes La Moxie stand out nicely.
This is an absolute pickup. This is a very honest sounding EP that I think would be hard not to enjoy. I really love the guitar tone and vocal style. Sure, it is not anything totally new. We have all heard something similar at some point. However, I think that the mix of inspiration taken from here and there comes together to make something that is very enjoyable. It is like a good bourbon. Sure, there are lots of similar bourbons, but this is the one you keep going back to. There is just something special about it.
- ‘You’ve Burnt Your Bridge, Now Lie In It’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
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