Posted on: October 27, 2011 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Out of the Sun is the first track on The Loose Hinges’ self-titled album, hitting listeners with a sound that is boldly different than practically anything that is on the market. The female vocals, coupled with the shifting, slinky sound achieved by the rest of the band has no comparison. Hints of Dusty Springfield and Nancy Sinatra can be heard in this aforementioned vocals, but the electronic arrangements that cradle these vocals establish a completely different head set. Mystery Solved brings things into a much more jangly and indefinite style; The Loose Hinges continue to forge through, aided by a guitar line that is just as much Gish-era Smashing Pumpkins as it is psychedelic rock.

Don’t Let Me Hold Back is the perfect example of the two sides of The Loose Hinges working in tandem; the vocals weave a tapestry that lays over the already complex arrangements below. This track represents some of the most heady music that I have heard this year, and the four minutes of run time feels substantially longer owing to this. An individual that can give their full attention to this track (and by extension, to the rest of the album) will be lost in all the twists and turns that the band has provided here.

The second half of the album adds further to this mystique; Oh Boy goes back to the 19th and early 20th century in the band’s appreciation for folk music. The Loose Hinges’ debut is like a grab bag in which every toy and trinket is good – one will ultimately have no idea what is contained within when they first purchase the CD, but will be able to cherish every single thing that issues forth.

Top Tracks: Out of the Sun, Don’t Let Me Hold Back

Rating: 9.0/10

The Loose Hinges – The Loose Hinges (CD) / 2011 Self / 11 Tracks / http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Loose-Hinges/146084982070674

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