Far from the world of laptop recordings comes a live album sure to take hold of your heart. Sydney-based singer-songwriter Spike Vincent has released a self-titled debut album offering guitar driven pop-rock, tinted by a candid Australian charm.
Recorded live and in one take for a small audience at Damien Gerard Recording Studios in Balmain, Vincent has created a loving and sorrowful ode to the power of performance. He revels in this recording style, evident by the elation and passion in each passing song.
Spike Vincent has a masterful talent for transporting audiences to another time and place. On his debut album, you’ll feel as if you’re right there in that Balmain Studio.
The album is driven by its low temperamental rhythm, a theatrical placement of chord and melody accompanied by a band that presides under Vincent’s hammering deputyship. Through its honest and frank style, Spike Vincent delivers six tracks of brooding vocals, introspective lyrics and atmospheric guitar.
Opening tune Lisp taps into a distorted, gritty mood with a likeness seen in the works of The Drones and The Scientists, while Get Over It combines airy riffs with unadulterated Australiana ambience.
Launceston strips back the flare, allowing Vincent’s dark and mellow voice to command the narrative-driven tune. Standing out with thunderous drums, Lie In The Dust also offers just a hint of ‘80s inspired synth.
Faded not only rides the waves of love and loss, but contains perhaps the most pure and perfect line of the record; “I’m wearing your grandmother’s ring. Yeah, I’m drinking another VB”.
A more sustained pop-rock set is found in I Like You. Not only do the beats explode into a bubbly heartbreak of sorts, but this single is also marked by some exemplary Australian lyricism:
“If I like you, will my soul turn into gravel? If I like you, will my life begin to unravel?”
If you ever thought the image of gravel couldn’t be woven into a turbulent love song – you were wrong. I Like You fits perfectly into place as the final track on the album, serving as both a sorrowful and toe-tapping tune.
Spike Vincent is an essential listen. This is an album that carries with it a sense of excitement and truth, harking to an age where performance was grounded to a single time and place.
You can get your limited tape out now through Dinosaur City Records / Burger Records, or catch Spike Vincent at one of the dates listed below:
February 16 – Union Hotel, Sydney – Details
February 23 – Secret Garden Festival (SOLD OUT) – Details
April 6 – Oxford Arts Factory, Sydney – Details
