Low-key blues alt rock from Brooklyn-based newcomers
Couples who make music together are a touchy subject. For every Paul and Linda McCartney there’s always the thought that “it’s not the Beatles”. And the White Stripes? Hardly a solid going concern. She Keeps Bees are a couple. They are also a band. For the moment, we’ll leave it at that.
Like the Stripes before them, they make low-key blues-based indie rock. Just guitar, occasional percussion and Jessica’s vocals. The vocals are very Patti Smith meets Cher meets Janice Joplin, with a bit of PJ Harvey thrown in for good measure. They move from a whisper to a soulful moan across the EP seemingly without effort. It’s an original voice that doesn’t take over the music, and a refreshing change from the overdone showing off that pervades both female fronted bands and blues rock as a whole. Musically, it’s a true partnership.
Taking to heart the down-home feel of both the blues and alternative rock, Revival was recorded in Andy and Jessica’s apartment, and the slightly imperfect recording suits the raw and soulful elements of the music perfectly. It’s a shame that some tracks here aren’t so memorable without a few plays. The standout tracks are ‘Gimmie’, already bringing the band moderate success as a single, and the soulful ‘Release’. We can take or leave the average ‘Pile Up’ and ‘Revival’.
The sound is vulnerable, dark, ecstatic and seductive all at once. She Keeps Bees are likely to be gaining a cult following right now, but if that will be enough to sustain and develop their sound from one of many struggling modern blues-rock bands into something outstanding, only time will tell.