aaamusic | On 19, Feb 2012

The Beautiful Mind is the new EP by the Damn Vandals. Despite what their name suggests, there is nothing screaming leather jackets and spray paint – nothing stereotypical – about their music: opener Beautiful Mind is a clever combination of Echo and the Bunnymen and a certain Oasis-inspired type of guitar music; this being one of the most inventive pairing I’ve heard in a while. He Pulls A Knife sports a strong focus on story-telling, led by the frontmans’  Ian McCulloch-esque croon. This song creates eerie atmospheres by combining a penchant for blood-tinged affairs with uncanny guitar soundtracking. Union Jack Boxes follows on, sounding like the British Sea Power covering Cum On Feel The Noise; brilliant indeed. And when Trouble with Jesus kicks in and boldly enters Led Zeppelin territory, infusing it with a little Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, it becomes clear that the Damn Vandals are masters of Brit rock reinvention, which they celebrate with creativity and wit.

 

Chiara Amoretti