aaamusic | On 16, Oct 2011

Right from the start, what is most striking about Veronica Falls’ self-titled LP is the paradoxical atmosphere of understated melodrama. The opener is even titled ‘Found My Love In A Graveyard’, a suitably dark and slow-burning song, with a guitar sound more raw than you would expect, and beautifully tuneful, harmonised male/female vocals that overlap one another in a manner that is at once both ethereal and distinctively human. A refreshing lack of reverb or echo really helps mark the song out despite a slightly trite chorus refrain, and hooks the listener into a world that is fantastical yet with a decidedly realistic feel as well. ‘Right Side Of My Brain’ kicks in with an upbeat downstroke guitar riff that sounds like pop played on sandpaper, and a jaunty drumbeat only adds to the musical lo-fi sunshine, at odds with the shadowed introspection of the lyrics, with a treat of a treble-heavy blues via 60s pop solo that segues nicely into the final chorus. ‘Misery’ and ‘All Eyes On You’ carry a similar vibe in sounding a lot like an indie rock Shangri-Las, all sweet harmonies, crystalline production, catchy melodies, a cute breakdown, and morbid subject matter to create a haunting result.

It isn’t all pretty pictures with creepy details however – ‘The Fountain’ is a genuinely chilling number, with its bleak opening melody and elegiac quality somewhere between a funeral dream set in a dark forest, and a breakup song. The gathering momentum in dynamic and tempo only serves to make the song all the more compelling, and the layered vocals are used effectively throughout, with spectral croons giving away to unison emphasis in what is a stronger set of lyrics than many songs on offer. Same with the fevered, almost rock n roll sprint of ‘Beachy Head’, another explicitly dark number that drags hints of the Jesus & Mary Chain and The Cure into the mix, with squalling guitars plastered thick over gentle orchestration and ominous female lead vocals almost comparable to a more accessible Skeletal Family.

Musically, ‘Bad Feeling’ is a standout, with a truly sunny yet simple chorus hook coupled with deadpan monotone vocals and a galloping percussion throughout. What is essentially a “vocal solo” only hits the composing effort home, with both singers giving a great harmonised, wordless duet. On the flipside, ‘Veronica Falls’ itself is a lush and tranquil track that unfolds in soft-focus melancholy beauty.

The issue here is that so much time is spent of what is essentially a well-crafted clash of form and content, that often the lyrics themselves suffer. True, the cheer fits the melancholy like a second skin, but the melancholy is left stunted and unfinished, and as a result, the songs do occasionally blend into one, as more than half pull the exact same set of tricks to mark themselves out. ‘The Box’ for example just feels a bit flat in terms of a familiar guitar/drum pattern and too subdued vocals, whereas ‘Wedding Song’ captures the Shangri-Las’ habit of overegging the point to death.

 

In closing, ‘Veronica Falls’ has a lot more to offer than an awful lot of pop records, and if you’re in the market for well-crafted, fully-polished songs for a rainy day, you’ve hit the jackpot. However, this isn’t so much a concept album as the same few songs in different hats. Charming it may be, but ultimately the album feels unfinished both as a whole and as a series of parts.

 

Katie H-Halinski