Genaro – Genaro
Hmmm, I really am not sure what to say about the debut album by Genaro, the latest to drop from the conveyor belt of superior Scottish indie, that will help you know what to expect.
Basically, they are simultaneously unsurprising and impossible to pin down. Their sound spans pretty much all of indie history for the last twenty years, but isn’t quite comparable to any one specific group. In modern terms they sound a bit like Interpol or the Killers, but they can be far too electronic for that comparison to hold a lot of the time. There’s plenty of 80s and 90s shoegaze thrown in there as well, and I was even reminded of the Bees at times. So maybe I’d say a slightly less miserable Interpol (mind you, even Interpol are a less miserable Interpol these days) with an echo of indie kids past throughout the record.
It’s not the most consistent of albums, I must say. At their worst they can sound a bit like the recent Killers output – on-message but lifeless – but at their best they manage to evade any attempts to nail them down and produce music that sounds like the best song released this year by a group you know but can’t quite name. I get the impression they’d be excellent live, too – I don’t have any idea why, but I will find out at the soonest possible opportunity and let you know.
Listen to these two songs – truly, truly excellent music. This shows you how good these lads can be when they’re on song. Definitely one to watch for the future – they could lapse into electro-indie-lite which is in evidence towards the tail end of their record, or they could push on with this quality of material and become brilliant. I very much hope for latter!
Genaro – Suspicions
Genaro – Garp 52
you know what you are, mr. toad? you are mad prolific! your brain must be full to bursting with ideas.
p.s. i’m not sure what you mean by being “on-message” in regard to the music.
Sometimes the words come out before the thoughts are clear.
I think I mean ‘as one with the current indie orthodoxy’. What a fine expression that is. Basically, nothing that will surprise you, given what the radio has been playing for the last few years.
Does that explain it a bit better?
yeah, that’s clearer. in other words, more or less in line with the status quo.
i usually think of that term as being more of a political one, and in particular one used to death by the right-wing when it comes to sticking to their talking points. so i wasn’t sure if you meant the killers had some sort of agenda they were trying to promote.
well, i didn’t really think that, but it could have been what you meant.
On-message must be just about the ultimate political insult. If ever anything implied more thoughtless obedience I have yet to hear it.