Reubens Accomplice - I Blame The Scenery
by Benjamin Howarth
published: 20 / 1 / 2002
Label:
Better Looking
Format: CD
intro
Original and effective sounding CD by emo band, who are also heavily influenced by Americana, which features an appearance from Jim Atkins of Jimmy Eat World as a backing musician.
This is one of the most original CDs I’ve heard in a while. While Reubens Accompice are an emo band, they are also influenced by traditional Americana. It isn’t an obvious combination,but it is works well. The highlight is the opening track 'Happy Mondays', which combines familiar jangly but powerful emo guitar lines with an engaging melody. The influence from Americana is subtle, but it gives the music a warm sound that is rich and has a lot of depth. The vocals are not outstandingly powerful but combine well with the music’s relaxed atmosphere. This isn’t the sort of album that will ever be played at parties, but it does represent the diversity in the emo scene at the moment. Reubens Accomplice come from a new generation of bands that are taking their influences from emo pioneers like Sense Field, The Promise Ring, Chamberlain and Jimmy Eat World, but which are adding a further dimension to their sound. For a lot of British groups ,this means incorporating a metal element (quite often in the style of the Deftones) but some American bands such as Reubens Accompice have gone the other way and added an art rock element instead. Funnily enough, Jim Atkins of Jimmy Eat World appears here as a backing musician. That can only add to the kudos for what is sure to be the first of many great releases from the emo scene in 2002.
Track Listing:-
1 Happy Mondays2 Were Not As Big As We Feel
3 Losing Sleep
4 Oh My God
5 Down Again
6 Fireworks
7 Looking Forward
8 Were Waking Up Kings
9 Loop
10 Mixing Memory With Desire
11 Borders
12 I Swear To Good Your God At This
13 The Things We Said
14 Whales Of The Desert
most viewed articles
current edition
In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - #15- On Being Dignified and Old aka Ten Tips From Jah Wobble On How To Be Happy.Dennis Tufano - Copernicus Center, Chicago, 19/7/2024
Elliott Murphy - Interview
Wreckless Eric - Interview
In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - #16: Living in the Minds of Strangers
In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - #17: Tom Robinson
Adrian Gurvitz - Interview
Norman Rodger - Interview
Chris Spedding - Interview
Penumbra - Interview
most viewed reviews
current edition
Groovy Uncle - Making ExcusesPhilip Parfitt - The Dark Light
Jules Winchester - The Journey
Deep Purple - =1
Bill Wyman - Drive My Car
Ross Couper Band - The Homeroad
Hawkestrel - Chaos Rocks
John Murry and Michael Timmins - A Little Bit of Grace and Decay
Popstar - Obscene
Splashgirl and Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe - More Human
Pennyblackmusic Regular Contributors
Adrian Janes
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dastardly
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank
Kimberly Bright
Lisa Torem
Maarten Schiethart