Baby Darling Doll Face Honey by Band of Skulls
LABEL: Shangri-La Music

The trio Band of Skulls met while in college in Southampton, London and quickly made their presence known throughout the local art and music community. Through a series of very fortunate events, including some iTunes press and perhaps a healthy dose of fate, Band of Skulls debut album Baby Darling Doll Face Honey is taking off at lightening speed—and for very good reasons.

I would call these guys your standard balls-to-the-wall, hurts-so-good rock band, though what they are giving us is far from standard. They have the depth of Radiohead while at the same time emanating the spunk tendencies of Primus and, at the end of the day, what they are giving us is borderline classic. Their melodies, harmonies and lyrics stand so strong that I was absolutely floored upon learning that this was, in fact, the group’s first album.

“When they are not harmonizing they take
turns singing lead. To say that they compliment
each other is an understatement.”

The first thing that won me over, sort of instantly, with these guys was their use of voice. The two responsible for this are Emma Richardson who plays bass and sings and Russell Mardsen who plays guitar and sings. When they are not harmonizing they take turns singing lead. To say that they compliment each other is an understatement. They belong together. They both have very distinct vocal timbres and styles, each bringing out the best in the other.

In "Honest," one of the few mellower songs on the album, Emma’s voice carries you away with her captivating vocal style. We get a break from the distortion and electric guitar tantrums of the previous tracks, with the introspective addition of acoustic guitars. Add to the mix, the equally strong and unique vocals of Russel Mardsen, and you end up with a musical canvas that would make the most genius of the Impressionists squirm.

The other huge component in my praising Band of Skulls, is their uncannily catchy, rhythmically hypnotic, and lyrically driven melodies. These are the kind of melodies that leave you feeling strangely fulfilled and quite intoxicated. Two that pop into my mind at the moment are "Death By Diamond And Pearls" and "Patterns." The melodies are so nasty, dripping with the blues and the lyrics so clever that I cannot do them justice by putting into words why this is so. It just is.

That being so, I would highly suggest that you get you hands onto this album AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. If you like to get your Rock and Roll on, but need truth and soul and innovative songwriting in the mix (as do I), this is your prescription: take one full dose of Baby Darling Doll Face Honey and call me in the morning.


REVIEWED BY LYNN SHER
LYNN'S FAVORITE TRACKS: "Cold Fame" • "Patterns" • "Death By Diamonds And Pearls"
You can listen to Lynn’s work in The SaVAgE KiNGs on myspace

Band of Skulls from Shangri-La Music on Vimeo.