The Connecticut trio The Brazen Youth makes music that owes huge debts to their worthy (and, frankly, clear-as-day) inspiration points. And if a listener can think that some of this sounds like Elliott Smith stuff, or a classic from The Lilac Time, that's fine as I'm sure that this young group will eventually produce something as good as the numbers from those acts and others. The band's new record, Primitive Initiative, is out this Friday and it's sure to draw further such comparisons from other reviewers.
"Back of My Mind" rides a riff that sounds like Alex Turner solo stuff to easy success, while the more languid "You Could Not Provoke Me To" is all winsome charm and simple melodic bliss. These young players have an ease with a hook that suggests artists twice their age, and, as a result, things never feel forced. "Birds Inside My Attic" is folk-y goodness, while the riper "So Young Then" ought to make many astute listeners think of U.K. bands like I Am Kloot and Clearlake. The Brazen Youth rarely work up a sweat here on Primitive Initiative, and while that makes things easy to appreciate, it rarely reveals any fire in the playing. Brazen but not bold, The Brazen Youth are content to ply their (somewhat) gentle trade here to lots of success, reminders of the glory days of American indie abounding throughout this record.
Primitive Initiative is out on Friday.
More details on The Brazen Youth via the band's official website, or via the band's official Facebook page.
[Photo: Tobias Broucke]