The Thrills: Easy-Going California Rock/Pop/Country
Written: Mar 03 '04 (Updated May 11 '04)
Product Rating:
Pros: Sunny, interesting, and relaxing...
Cons: Sometimes repetitive and a bit too retro...
The Bottom Line: Who knew that Irishmen could so capture the beaches, ocean, and cool breeze of California? The Thrills prove that even the Irish can appreciate a good ol' dose of sunshine.
lambchops's Full Review: So Much For the City by The Thrills (Ireland)
Four months in California (San Diego to be precise) inspired a group of five childhood friends to write most of the album that became So Much For The City. Clearly influenced by both American music of the sixties and seventies and the sunny west coast, the Irish band The Thrills managed a lovely, kitschy, and easy-going album steeped in the musical tradition of the Beach Boys, The Byrds, and even Carole King. It’s a very surprising affair.
Fortunately for The Thrills the retro feel is broken up by the uncomfortable, fey voice of lead singer Conor Deasy (who does double duty as guitarist). He seems at home in the front of the band, but yet his boyish charm gives a bit of added flavor to the overall picture. The rest of the young band (all in the early twenties) is rounded out by Deasy’s childhood neighbor and guitarist Daniel Ryan not to mention three school chums drummer Ben Carrigan, keyboardist Kevin Horan, and bassist Padraic McMahon.
Blending the old and the new is the name of the game for The Thrills—even their CD cover reeks of years long since gone including a somewhat fuzzy picture, cheesy fonts, and a sparse (or is it profound) landscape. Considering all the different factors on the surface may seem to immediately discount the band as a novelty act.
“I mean, come on! An Irish band that sounds like something from thirty years singing about California—you’ve got to be kidding!”
Oh contraire. The Thrills are a fun, not at all usual, and well worth the effort of checking out. Their sound is incredibly sunny and mild—a hint of guitar, a dash of piano, and best of all the arrangement is sufficiently off-kilter to attract my attention. The one major failing of this debut album is that it entirely lacks anything that could be considered truly outstanding. All of it is interesting and entertaining, but very little (if anything) is really strikingly good or bad. The songs blend nicely and the album just generally feels good and right without going overboard.
Album opener Santa Cruz (You’re Not That Far) is a calm, smooth way to start this interesting pop/rock disc out. It certainly gives listeners a good idea of what else is to come on the disc. Equal parts jangle-rock and indie-pop, it rubs me the right way. I adore the vocals harmonies (ala Beach Boys) which so wonderfully melds with the hip, happy melody. This is without question the common theme throughout the ten other songs. And I generally like it.
Big Sur opens with a line that became the title of the album, but I think the nifty swiping of a Monkees lyric is what really draws me in--Hey, hey you're the Monkees/People said you monkeyed around, but nobody's listening now. This line goes to show that there’s a bit of melancholy wrapped up in the strangely chipper-sounding songs. Big Sur, in fact, is one of my favorite songs from this album.
Continuing on, I can’t help but be impressed by the overall feel of the album. The Thrills don’t take themselves overly serious. So Much For The City is all about the music and all about the lazy, summer feel. Don’t Steal Our Sun is a lovely, country-fied song that adds some real depth to the album. There are of course other moments that augment the quality of the album scattered throughout—the languid Deckchairs and Cigarettes is only the tip of the iceberg.
Also excellent is the surf-rocking One Horse Town. I adore the melody and the instrumentation (in particular the organ, xylophone, and other extraordinary additions) not to mention the appealing vocals. But with that said, it does get a bit repetitive—then again, surf rock wasn’t ever exactly the most dynamic sub-genre.
The first real bummer of the album comes with song six, Old Friends, New Lovers. Not to say it’s an awful thing, rather I just grow tired of the repetitive musical idea and sllloooow pace. But at the same time, I very much appreciate the addition of traditional electric guitars. The Thrills do their album a great service in the honky-tonk sentimentality of Say It Ain’t So and Hollywood Kids. The steel guitar, gentle percussion, vocal twang, and unhurried pace are refreshingly unexpected.
So Much For The City is capped off by a trio of decent enough songs. Both Just Travel Through and ’Til the Tide Creeps In lack the direction or dynamics or catchy melody that would draw me in. But with that said, I can’t help but adore Your Love Is Like Las Vegas and it’s attractive, easy going attitude. Even at their worst, The Thrills still manage to be mildly entertaining.
The Thrills debut may or may not be for you. If you are keen on pop from bands like Belle & Sebastian, Rufus Wainwright, or the slightly more plugged in Ivy then this band will definitely appeal to you as will the album. As much as I like So Much For The City, I am curious as to how the band will follow the album up. It is so centered on California that a follow-up will absolutely require a revamping of arrangements and ideas. In any case…I have to recommend them and this album.
Track Listing:
01. Santa Cruz (You’re Not That Far)
02. Big Sur
03. Don’t Steal Our Sun
04. Deckchairs and Cigarettes
05. One Horse Town
06. Old Friends, New Lover
07. Say It Ain’t So
08. Hollywood Kids
09. Just Traveling Through
10. Your Love Is Like Las Vegas
11. ‘Til the Tide Creeps In
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