Sunday, January 26, 2014

Spellbound "Eleven Deadly Sins"

(Self released 2007)

Don't Believe In Love
Just In Time
Blood On Your Hands
Fools' Gold
Toccata In Dm
Headfirst
Killer
She's So Modern
Skater Girl
Psycho Nite (2007)
You Scare The Shit Out Of Me
 
 Frankie Hayes is a sonic powerhouse! People often complain that studio albums lack the energy of a booze fuelled live performance.But this, the latest shiny beermat from Irish psychobilly stalwarts Spellbound will leave such critics eating their words...and washing them down with a nice creamy pint of Guinness. The sounds emanating from this album are to put it mildly..."exciting". The boys have honed their respective talents to a fine art. It's a perfect showcase of their song writing and musical adroitness. Guitarist Dave shows he too can flex those vocal chords on Fool's Gold and goes "Bach" to his roots (geddit?) on Toccata In Dm which I think pays homage to the skills of Toy Dolls frontman Olga more so than to poor auld Johann. The only other cover on here is The Boomtown Rats' "She's So Modern" which was always a song I liked but given the Spellbound treatment I now LOVE it (even if Frankie pronounces it "modren"...isn't that right Uncle Meat?).

Dave has penned most of the songs here, with Frankie taking out his pencil for the excellent opening track "Don't Believe In Love" and the re-working of the 1989 classic Psycho Nite! Even award winning bassist Simon shows us he's not just a poseur in a hat with the extremely catchy and melodic closing ditty "You Scare The Shit Out Of Me".

I don't recommend you buy this album; I INSIST! Eleven Deadly Sins is atypical of the current batch of albums doing the rounds in that it neither fits in the niches of old school or modern...sorry...modren psychobilly but perfectly bridges the gap between both. Jaysus it makes me proud to be Irish!! 
 
The O'Prez 2007




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