Darkness To Warm Your Heart

Coming on like something in between Badlands and a Charles Dickens novel, Sister Chain & Brother John have delivered an album I can safely say is not like anything else I have heard this year. Or last year in fact… and for that reason alone I like it. Their songs are 21st century parlor tales, self contained fables that conjure up images of checked shirts, diners and dark dark hearts. This is Wild At Heart without the happy ending. Sister Chain sings in a unique style over Brother John’s simple rhythmic bass lines and guitar hooks. Joanna Newsom is an obvious, but also lazy comparison. An air of melancholy runs through most of this, their debut album but dig a little bit deeper and there is a dry wit and comic absurdity completely missing from the majority of most of the music that passes my way. I think if I am honest, you will either hate this, or more hopefully you will love and cherish it. Nowadays, everyone wants to be in a band, or make music, or say their piece. It takes someone like Sister Chain & Brother John to come along and remind us - if you don't have anything new to say, in a way it's not been said before - don't bother. Subversive, interesting and unique. What more could you want?