ALBUM REVIEW: Shelters – Bars of Gold
Detroit sextet BARS OF GOLD present their new album, Shelters. Having formed out of members of BEAR VS. SHARK, where post-hardcore reigned, this post rock, indie outing is new territory for the guys. Will their sentiments land on this fresh appearance of musical expression?
Worthless Chorus is a beefy tune, with big hooks, big vocals and big beats. There’s blues running through this one like no one’s business, and that loose feel through the distortion to catch your interest. A peaceful lull builds itself back up from refrained notes into a heartfelt and worthwhile finale.
This brings us tidily into Atlantic City, which broods over sustained notes, before baring its soul in a simple but effective way. The honesty of the vocals, raw and unstable, wavering over the track might not be to everyone’s taste, but really conveys an emotional connection to the lyrics that those that engage will really enjoy.
$20 is much more of a funky, jazz infused shuffle of a song, erratic and abrasive. Abstract is the best word to use here, but by no means does that mean it faulters. $20 achieves exactly what it was intending to; the heart of a punk tune, the sentiment of the seventies and the groove to pull all the chaos together is pretty cool overall.
Sometimes snares its way into your ears with a simple beat, and a rising ambience before it’s tinkering bop takes full form. It’s a track that will catch you unawares; while there’s not half as much bombastic flare as the previous track, it’s much more of a slow burn groove. Easy enough to follow, with those raw vocals still overlaying on a bed of pretty choral moments keep this feeling as very much a BARS OF GOLD track.
Beans seems like a good bit of fun, with high indie inspired licks and chords coupled with a funky rhythm and an air of some of Nick Cage’s more experimental work in the vocals. Before the melody can become tiresome, they reinvent the whole motion of the track, which is smart as this track would have lost some in the middle without it.
Madonna is a pleading scream, with rumbles and a solidly inventive rolls and fills over the drums. If you’re into the record by this point, the overlay of ideas will keep you happy here. For those less inclined to the more pop influenced, this might not hit all the right notes in all the right places, but is good fun nonetheless.
Taking the pace down as things gear towards the end of the record, Montana is a fussy lullaby sung with a fresh breathiness in the vocals. It’s pretty chilled out, tempering the high energies of the rest of the record. there’s just as much truth on offer here as with the more chaotic songs, but with roots much more in the folky, post rock side of the band. Quite moments where the vocals ascend into pure and beautiful heights, with a wash of clean and humble guitar parts are the perfect kind of feel good.
funk is back with a vengeance on Plywood to Pine, with some real RED HOT CHILLI PEPPERS vibes coming through. The drums are let loose as much as the vocals, and a bassline that makes you want to move. The guitars keep things spicy, and are used sparingly, which works to the tracks advantage here. Things take a surreal turn at the midway point, which is a shame as this is one of the more interesting tracks in it’s opening segment.
G builds on a fairly decent riff, into something unique and unusual. It’s a short-lived interest in all honesty, as some of usual trappings of indie rock come back into usage, with the vocals not showing as much diversity as in previous moments on Shelters. With a running time of nearly seven minutes, this will maybe be a little too self-entertaining for some listeners.
It might have worked better as the complete ending to the album, but with the addition of the radio edit of Sometimes slapped on the end for good measure, and with little or even less to add in terms of dynamics than the slightly longer version, brings the album to an odd ending.
Some powerful moments are worth getting on board with for Shelters, as BAS OF GOLD demonstrate an honesty and heart-on-your-sleeve attitude that can really win a crowd. While in places the record loses itself to the more tried and tested elements of indie rock, there’s still a decent enough record overall from BARS OF GOLD.
Rating: 7/10
Shelters is out now via Equal Vision Records.
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