Music Review

09 January 2009 22:25 BST

Blackmarket: The Elephant in the Room

No Office Records, out November 10th.

Placebo-esque post punk emo rock.

What's it all about?

A Lake Havasu based rock quartet who have reached the UK via Las Vegas and Japan. You can now catch them touring with the Subways. These will be one of those support acts that you are actually pleased to have seen. They claim to draw inspiration from the Beatles, Elliott Smith and David Bowie. I feel that this is a slightly unjustified exaggeration, but there's no harm in aiming high. I would personally compare them to a male and more muted version of the Distillers or Hole. They also have strong resemblances to Silverchair and Placebo. I'm guessing they are huge fans of the latter and perhaps named their band after Placebo's iconic album Black Market Music.

To read the inthenews.co.uk live review of Blackmarket, click here
Who's it by?

A West Coast American band whose claim to fame was winning the Amplify Festival Contest in Vegas a couple of years ago. Daryl, Langdon, Mikey and Jason met at Junior High and are obviously close friends since you can notice the chemistry seeping through into their music. The album is remarkably tight for a debut, perhaps thanks to working with Sean Slade (Radiohead, Dinosaur Jr.) and Matthew Ellard (Morphine, Weezer, Elliott Smith).

As an example...

"I only wanted protection, instead of thinking for me."

Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys

Probably not in the near future. There are a few more bands in the same genre that do it way better than them. But they sound quite promising so I wouldn't totally rule it out.

What the others say

"You get the feeling that there's promise here though as Blackmarket are obviously talented but somehow they have produced a very safe and frankly uninteresting album." - www.musicomh.com

"It's the great sense of vulnerability that really generates the empathy that is derived from listening to this album. This, coupled with a very human element helps to create a more personal listening experience that nowadays is often lost in an oversaturated music industry, and it's this human element that makes The Elephant In The Room such a magnificent album." - www.themusicmagazine.co.uk

So is it any good?

Surprisingly, yes it is! Considering all songs on the album don't deviate too far away from the same sound, it is not too monotonous and kept me interested from start to finish. Some songs didn't have a mind-blowing impact but there were a few gems. Sheila and Sooner or Later had some good guitar riffs, reminiscent of the Strokes. The acoustic-driven White Lie was also pleasing and this was perhaps where I most picked up the odd Beatles or Bowie note. I'd be interested to see if they perform this well live. The album's definitely worth a whirl on the record player.

7/10

Elise Pithouse