Jennifer and Jessica Clavin are the two sisters that together make up Bleached. Hailing from LA, and with the help of drummer Jonathan Safley, the trio release their 12 track debut record, Ride Your Heart, on Dead Oceans label. A fast-paced, all-American album, this brings to mind the LA punk-rock scene of the 80s with tones of a young Siouxsie and The Banshees or the Go-Go’s .
The opening track, ‘Looking For A Fight’, starts with a catchy, somewhat infectious guitar riff before you hear the girls come in with their somewhat drawling harmonies. It is a pretty standard rock song, with simple song structures and guitar solos that are delivered well.
‘Next Stop’ follows. There is not too much variety between the first and second tracks with them both following a very familiar formula. Stand-out tracks on the album are the slightly more melodic, and interesting third track, ‘Outta My Mind’. ‘Guy Like You´ sees the girls turn off some of the distortion, and it showcases their vocals far better. It’s a summery love song that you could happily dance around a beach bonfire to as the sun set, with a beer in one hand and a lover in the other.
‘When I was Yours’, the closer of the record, reminisces about a previous relationship, a new age, love lost song, sung with what feels like little emotion – is a bit disappointing. The final 50 seconds are comprised of a guitar solo with driving drums and rhythm section that end up sounding a lot more like noise than anything that would stop you in your tracks.
The track titles of the album suggest an album written about a boy from a besotted teenage girl, who, apart from the occasional wobble, is vying for the love of said boy. Some of the charm of this record is the blasé attitude that comes across from the girls. A “we don’t care what you think”, angry LA kids vibe is an undertone throughout. Seeing a live show would be interesting.
Although this is by no means a bad album, and is worth a listen for fans of the genre, I feel it leaves you a little wanting. It could be a grower, or it could just be another girl rock band trying to stand out from the crowd but not quite coming up on top.
Release Date 01/04/2013 (Dead Oceans)
I have always had a passion for music. Growing up I spent many a Friday night glued to TOTP and many a Sunday attempting to record the Top 40 to tape. In secondary school I learnt the guitar and drums as well as being in every choir, sound crew and production I could. Finally, It was at University in Chester where I began to start writing reviews. Until then I didn't really think anyone would want to know my opinion. We had a guest lecturer come in and he had us do a minute task where we listened to a song and them had to write a descriptive one liner about it. I realised from this point that I could combine creative writing, music knowledge and opinion into something productive and interesting. That's when I signed up to Silent Radio. It was the perfect thing for me to get involved with, I could voice my opinion on the student airwaves and then write it for the website.Now I am a Music Production and Radio graduate, living in London and working my first industry job. I spend my days working at Metropolis Studios and my nights attempting to write well educated, witty and interesting reviews.When it comes to my taste in music I guess it's rather varied. I will pretty much give anything a listen. The genres closet to my heart would probably be rock, soul, funk and dance but thankfully my job is broadening my listening horizons even further. As a reviewer I would say I have a fan type approach and sometimes I am a little to generous when turning that dial but they are always honest and I hope to some degree, relevant. My hopes are to continue writing for SR, growing as a reviewer and expanding my music knowledge.
