Clock Hands Strangle
Distaccati / Live at WMSE
It took a trip from Florida to Wisconsin for this Melbourne-based quintet to show upon my radar. They took the trip to record a live on-the-air session at Midwestern free-form college station WMSE, and that’s how I made the connection. Two sets of files appeared from their publicist: a studio album called “Distacatti”, and a four-song live EP recorded live at the aforementioned radio gig. The EP echoes the original disc, diminished only by the rougher production values of a live recording. The album sounds vaguely familiar, sometimes recalling The Violent Femmes, sometimes Dylan, sometimes one of the Generic Alt Rockers of the last five years. Guitars are tight and filled with 16th notes and 12-string chords, vocals intrigue without getting weird, and the drums and mix lean toward a folk sound. The Americana-tinged chords don’t move me to declare this a revolution in modern music, but they have a sound and direction of their own and aren’t a bad way to spend an hour under the influence of ear buds. Give ‘em a listen if you can find them.
Clock Hands Strangle: http://www.myspace.com/clockhandsstrangle
