Vita are an incredibly interesting band and they’ve just released their debut LP, Oh The Beautiful Bovine.. Fronted by ex-Ilya K guitarist Niall Cuddihy, their music still carries a good deal of their charm. I must say, I was a big Ilya-K fan back when they were together. Went to many a gig, and devoured their LP, Anaesthesia ad Infinitum, when it came out so I was interested to see where Niall would take their sound. As it turns out, he’s taken it in a pretty natural direction. The album still has the stompy guitars and crashing drums of DeKay’s sound, but the classical, folk and electronic elements that were seeping into Ilya K’s later material have found their home on this record.
The album opens with the heavy ManFaith. The pattering arpeggiator that begins the track hides the battering that follows. A brooding, quasi-blues riff heads up the verses here, with lead singer Niall almost groaning his lyrics over the instrumentation, “I bruise like a fallen angel”. The vocals, mixed with the guitars reminds me of Mark Lanegan era Queens of the Stone Age. Next up is the introspective My Father’s Mean, which takes the emotional tone of the album right down to the ground from the heady opener. Indeed the album in general mixes the pounding of Niall’s Ilya K work with the more tender and emotional work the features throughout the LP.
The third track, Runner Beans, keeps the atmosphere edgy and ethereal. Samples spin off behind a whirling organ and it segways into the brilliant Ray Davies Sais. For me, this is the stand out track on the album. The “Na Na Na Na Na Naaa” chorus and pumping verses drive the track along in a really strong way, with guitars that stab in here and there to give it more edge. The beautiful Hazeldark soon follows. It sits at only a minute and a half, but it’s grace and elegance stay long after. I found myself going back to this simple track again and again. Niall sings“Dream afresh now your past has died, simply goes when theres love inside” and this just goes to further the introspective side of the album that contrasts the brash tracks that balance it.
Stand out tracks for me have to be ManFaith, Ray Davies Sais and Hazeldark although there are moments in album that are a bit lacking for me. I found myself humming a vocal line in the song Dirty Silhouette and a vocal never came. Not that that’s a big problem, but I felt there were not enough full on songs in the album and a few too many instrumentals for my liking. That said, having been a fan of Niall’s previous work, I was quite impressed with the album, and as an album in itself, it works beautifully. Definitely one to check out. You can download the album from their Soundcloud page.
Drop-D Rating: 7/10
Published on Drop-D.ie, April 1st, 2011
The album opens with the heavy ManFaith. The pattering arpeggiator that begins the track hides the battering that follows. A brooding, quasi-blues riff heads up the verses here, with lead singer Niall almost groaning his lyrics over the instrumentation, “I bruise like a fallen angel”. The vocals, mixed with the guitars reminds me of Mark Lanegan era Queens of the Stone Age. Next up is the introspective My Father’s Mean, which takes the emotional tone of the album right down to the ground from the heady opener. Indeed the album in general mixes the pounding of Niall’s Ilya K work with the more tender and emotional work the features throughout the LP.
The third track, Runner Beans, keeps the atmosphere edgy and ethereal. Samples spin off behind a whirling organ and it segways into the brilliant Ray Davies Sais. For me, this is the stand out track on the album. The “Na Na Na Na Na Naaa” chorus and pumping verses drive the track along in a really strong way, with guitars that stab in here and there to give it more edge. The beautiful Hazeldark soon follows. It sits at only a minute and a half, but it’s grace and elegance stay long after. I found myself going back to this simple track again and again. Niall sings“Dream afresh now your past has died, simply goes when theres love inside” and this just goes to further the introspective side of the album that contrasts the brash tracks that balance it.
Stand out tracks for me have to be ManFaith, Ray Davies Sais and Hazeldark although there are moments in album that are a bit lacking for me. I found myself humming a vocal line in the song Dirty Silhouette and a vocal never came. Not that that’s a big problem, but I felt there were not enough full on songs in the album and a few too many instrumentals for my liking. That said, having been a fan of Niall’s previous work, I was quite impressed with the album, and as an album in itself, it works beautifully. Definitely one to check out. You can download the album from their Soundcloud page.
Drop-D Rating: 7/10
Published on Drop-D.ie, April 1st, 2011
No comments:
Post a Comment