If you’ve ever wondered what a bit of ’80s indie mixed with a smattering of Pixies guitar would sound like, look no further.
Gold Class may be from Melbourne but they’ve chosen music from two entirely different continents to meld together for this second offering.
That said, Drum is spunky enough. Tunes like ‘We Were Never Too Much’ barge along in that angular, post-punk, jagged guitars way. Not too dark, certainly not too light, in the middle with crashing percussion and a sound that suggests the wearing of black jeans. No bad thing, perhaps, but I wouldn’t approach this album expecting to hear anything new.
Opener ‘Twist In The Dark’ has the most overt nod to the Pixies. Not in the vocals – woe betide anyone that tries to emulate the ferocious yelps of Black Francis – but in the top line of the guitars. That harassed but slightly bleached-out and despairing melody could easily be from the Boston band.
The problem is, for all it’s decent enough, decent is what it is. It’s better than the dreaded landfill indie, but the album as a whole doesn’t have a great personal identity. Certainly keep ’em dancing down the student disco – if such things still exist in their mop-haired incarnation – but not the thing that memories are made of. Other than to remind you to dig out someone else’s records.
Impossible to be too harsh on Gold Class, also impossible to bash out any great enthusiasm. Adequate and no more.
- The Breeders - 21 October 2017
- Gold Class - 25 August 2017
- Kamikaze Girls - 20 June 2017