More than five years since Jack and Meg White went their separate ways, their disciples are more numerous than ever – Alabama Shakes, Deep Vally and now Drenge. Though physically Drenge bare more of a resemblance to The Vaccines or Palma Violets, its Jack White they turn to when the time comes to cut loose, delivering filthy crunching riffs and yowling solos with little regard for prevailing trends or technical mastery.
They’ve been a surprise success story too, landing well inside the top ten at a time when much hyped acts like Savages limped to number 36.
Great early singles like ‘Dogmeat’ and the superlative ‘Bloodsports’ are included here alongside the more puerile ‘People in Love make me feel Yuck’. For some that title alone will be enough to having them moving onto more civilised things but the real charm of Drenge comes in their unpretentious buzzsaw energy, never harnessed better than in their ferocious live show. Like Pulled Apart By Horses or Future of the Left it’s difficult to capture their particular quirky energy on record but producer Ross Orton delivers some of his best work and for thirty-seven minutes the duo fizz and spark appealingly. It runs out of steam slightly towards the end with the lumbering ‘Let’s Pretend’ and the lightweight ‘Bye Bye Bao Bao’ but they manage one last blowout on the Libertines-esque ‘Fuckabout’.
In a recent interview Drenge may have remarked that they were “not totally overjoyed” by Labour MP Tom Watson’s stamp of approval. No worries, they’ll be making plenty more fans very soon.
7
Max Sefton
No comments:
Post a Comment