Le Reno Amps - So For Your Thrills (Pet Piranha)
3/5
By: Matt Tomiak
This Glaswegian quartet's first album proper follows in the illustrious tradition of their nation's indie heritage. Elegiac curtain-raiser 'Dawn Says' brings to mind the wide-screen refinement of fellow Scots The Delgados, whilst 'Poison Letter' is an exuberant, Bright Eyes circa- 'I'm Wide Awake...' style romp. 'Beautiful' (My Time Has Come) makes possibly the best use of the upbeat banjo since 'Big Sur' by The Thrills.
Singer Scott Maple's hangdog, unlucky-in-love lamentations form the basis for much of the lyrical content, and are put to best use on the campfire sing-along 'Holly Wouldn't Have Me', a tune not a million miles away from Neil Young's 'Helpless', which finds Maple crying into his Irn-Bru (because that's what all Scottish people drink, isn't it?) bemoaning shattered illusions- 'I'm never gonna get to Hollywood, I'm never gonna live that dream.' The folky wistfulness of both 'Gathering Ash' and 'Tree House' are reminiscent of the Decemberists: although the latter does include a chorus alarmingly similar to that of 90s TV pop moppets S Club's hit 'Reach.' Ahem. Closer 'Wound Up' recalls the grungy-yet-melodic grandeur of another famed Scottish combo, the mighty Teenage Fanclub.
Cosy and atmospheric without being earth-shattering, 'So For Your Thrills' is a gentle pleasure.
Legally download four MP3s from 'So For Your Thrills' HERE.
Artists in this article: Le Reno Amps
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