photo by Robert Russell; photo courtesy of Crowflies Communications
EP Review of Pareidolls: Jessie (Red Licorice Records)
Pareidolls‘ “Jessie” was released by Red Licorice Records as a 7″ vinyl single with “Give and Take” as its B side. The 4-song Jessie EP also contains two tracks – “Slater Street” and “Freefalling” – recorded live at the 100 Club.
The band of talented teenagers is comprised of Georgia Attwood (vocals), Freya Wilcox (drums), Bethan Sheldrick (bass), Tabitha Law (guitar) and Biba Russell (guitar). The music jams and jangles, and the tight rockin’ sound is a fitting homage to the female rock pioneers cited in the band’s promo material: The Go-Go’s, The Bangles, and L7. I’d place Pareidolls at the L7 rockin’ end of the spectrum. From the pages of the Blog, though, a lot of what I’m hearing in Attwood’s vocals remind me of teens-at-the-time-I-reviewed them TOS’s lead singer Sophie Ward, especially when the vocal requires a lilting edge.
photo by Robert Russell; photo courtesy of Crowflies Communications
The title track, “Jessie,” starts a straight-forward rocker with a funky bassline, a soulful-rockin’ vocal line, a bluesy/crunchy axework. It’s an energy-packed romp for the first two minutes before it seems to experience a power loss for about 30 seconds, becoming exceedingly slow and drawn out for about 30 seconds before a 15-second build-up (energy recovery) back to its previous energetic, just a hair shy of frantic pace as it races to the end. I mean, it was already a song worth hearing even without that nifty late-song slowdown and recovery, but with that added clever maneuver, it’s a must hear. I guarantee “Jessie” will become a quick favorite.
“Give and Take,” the 7″ inch’s B side, is a crunchy, bangin’ rocker. It also gives Attwood a chance to unveil a very cool, ear-shattering rock ‘n roll wail.
photo by Robert Russell; photo courtesy of Crowflies Communications
“Slater Street,” next, is more straightforward rocker with a straightforward line of attack and some impressive guitarwork. EP-ender “Freefalling” takes a more methodical funky-bluesy angle, at least with the bass, while the guitar and drums are straight-up rock ‘n roll all the way. A nifty bridge that’s lightly instrumented behind Attwood’s high, crisp vocals also adds a neat touch to “Freefalling.”
If I take just one thing away from this EP, it’s that “Jessie” is a song that’s likely to become a fast favorite, while the rest of the EP reveals a band with a sound that’ll be very entertaining at a live concert and capable of spawning several more hits over the coming years.
To keep up with this rising young band, check out Pareidolls’ linktree and follow their socials. (You can find links to their socials at their linktree).
