Posted on: February 11, 2010 Posted by: anfnewsacct Comments: 0

Gliss – Love The Virgins / 2006 Mountain Lo-Fi / 12 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/gliss / http://www.tough-cookie.co.uk / Reviewed 25 September 2006

I can’t tell exactly which approach Gliss is trying to take with their “Love The Virgins”. During “I Want You”, there is a heavy late nineties approach to things (reminding listeners of acts like Placebo and Stabbing Westward), but the emotional output of the lead singer is something that can be reconciled to the current period, with the emo genre. At some point, where the two distinct styles that Gliss call forward converge has to be at the radio friendly style that the band envelopes their sound. There is little doubt in my mind that Gliss will be able to have a major hit on their hands, and this is only made more concrete by the looking-back, seventies type of sound during “Huh What?”. While the band is not as embarrassing as Jet, they do make a caricature of the original style.

Each subsequent track on “Love The Virgins” showcases a different aspect of Gliss. “Blue Sky” seems to be an amalgamation of the two styles that were present in “I Want You” and “Huh What?” respectively. This means that the band is approaching “Blue Sky” with a slinky, yet electronic infused style. “Innocent Eyes’ goes back a few years to the New Romantic style of the eighties before throwing a psychedelic-heavy set of guitars into the mix. The band really knows their influences, that is something to be sure, but there is an always-shifting sound to Gliss that does not always work during “Love The Virgins”. However strong the other tracks on the disc may be, it is the opening angular sound to the title track that will win over the most fans.

The interplay between the drums and the vocals on this track is something that is also a notch up from the rest of the tracks on the disc. While the songs on “Love The Virgins” are solid, the title track’s impressive romp shows that the band still has a little room to grow on future recordings. Gliss may not be turning tons of heads yet, but after this CD gets disseminated to the relevant radio stations and zines, I have a feeling deep in the pit of my stomach that Gliss will break it big. I would like the band to maybe add a little more of their own sound to the tracks on “Love The Virgins”, but by and large, the disc is solid beyond that.

Top Tracks: Off To Bed, Innocent Eyes

Rating: 6.5/10

[JMcQ]

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