Posted on: June 9, 2012 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0


 

Skyline Rodeo tries to imbue a certain atmosphere on its listeners with the extended opening of “Peppermint Patty”. The track is firmly rooted in the early nineties, mainly taking its influences from the alternative rock of the time and also from “Cherub Rock”-era Smashing Pumpkins. Ending that quick soon after, a very angular style hits the listeners; “George Bailey Complex” has much more in common with Devo and Franz Ferdinand than the previous track had to do with the Pumpkins.

The retro style of this track really is apt to confuse listeners, as the band has came out from the gates with a strong application of the earlier alternative style. “Trim The Fat” is a track that seems to have commonalities with both of the two prior tracks; the interesting use of spacing during the track gives the song a different-sounding tempo from most else that has came out. There is a very Alice in Chains-type of feel to the vocals during “Trim The Fat”, but even this is not a definite; there are times during the track where the vocals approximate both Placebo and Suade. The most interesting finding on “Long Drive To Iceland” has to be “The Advent of Indie Yuppie”, which stands at the nexus of disaffected eighties rock and the cold, calculating sound of an Interpol. Still, Skyline Rodeo adds its own little twist to the track when the vocals achieve a sort of reedy sound that is not present in either influence. Each of the tracks have a slightly different skew on the general style of Skyline Rodeo; the brooding style of “Tomorrow I’m Self-Aware” really seems to be couched more in the grunge style of bands like Nirvana rather than any of the previous influences that the band had made individuals aware of previously.

Even more than the brooding style, both in vocals and instruments, Skyline Rodeo really seems to have the pacing of the track down to the point that this could be a Nirvana song if the lead vocalist was just a mite more whiny. The disc is two years old, so I would want to hear where Skyline Rodeo has went in the meanwhile. The disc has a number of strong tracks, but what really seems to be the biggest problem here is that the band does not have any “Face” tracks that individuals would find out about the band with; no stand-out hits (even though the disc is studded with interesting songs) to really speak of.

Top Tracks: Trim The Fat, Fire In The Hole

Rating: 5.4/10

[JMcQ]

Skyline Rodeo – Long Drive To Iceland / 2004 Mighty Ming / 9 Tracks / http://www.skylinerodeo.com / Reviewed 13 February 2006

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