Gary Reynolds and the Brides of Obscurity - Santiago's Vest

Genre indie-rock Publisher Electrokitty Records External Links Gary Reynolds and the Brides of Obscurity Website

Easy, and quite often lazy, comparisons are one of the most common critical fallbacks for any rock writer stretching for something to say about a particular band or artist. We, myself most definitely included, all seem to fall prey to this time and time again – "he plays guitar like an acid-fried Prince", "she sounds like a young Tina Turner", or "they sound like Black Sabbath covering Van Morrison in a German techno club". But the most blatant abuse of this critical clichè has to be comparing any band to the Beatles. References to a "Beatlesque riff" or a "vocal melody nicked from McCartney" pop up with such frequency that someone should institute a ten-dollar fine whenever a critic tosses in an unnecessary Fab Four name check. What is a critic to do when they come across a band that not only calls such comparisons to mind, but practically demands them?

Seattle-based group Gary Reynolds and the Brides of Obscurity have been cranking out prolific amounts of orchestral pop songs over the past several years and this, their third release on Electrokitty records, practically dares one not to compare them to the shaggy lads of Liverpool. Perky rhythms, background harmonies, and George Harrison trademarked guitar counter-melodies are packed into nearly every single track. And if all that wasn't quite enough to convince you of the band's single-minded influence, Gary Reynolds' nasally John Lennon imitation should seal the deal. They certainly aren't the first indie-minded band to dig around the Beatles' discography for influence, but most of them aren't quite this slavish about doing so.

The pair of tracks that opens Santiago's Vest, "Capital State" and "Everybody's Somewhere", do an excellent job of setting the tempo for the rest of the album – upbeat pop songs anchored by guitar and keyboards that feel instantly familiar without doing much to challenge or excite the listener. Comfort food for the ears, in other words. With the formula set, the band spends the rest of the album tossing off very slight variations on it – maybe some layered, chiming guitars here or a piano ballad there. It's frustrating to hear a band so devoted to the Beatles miss the point completely - the Fab Four was all about pushing boundaries and trying new things, not being content to crank out three minute pop tune after three minute pop tune.

This isn't to say that this is a terrible album, most of these songs are, in fact, perfectly passable pop songs that would probably sound great as a soundtrack to your next summer barbecue. But that is also the biggest weakness of Santiago's Vest, it's hard to picture this as anything but comfortable aural wallpaper that discourages deeper digging. Just try and get past this line from "You Are What You See" which tries and fails to capture some of that Lennon pseudo-mysticism, "you are what you see / you are what you be / its all that you need / and you know what you know / you know that it's so / for all you know". Ouch. Hopefully next time around these guys will be able to more fully realize their talents and rise above this blatant Beatles worship and I won't be forced to trot out another batch of critical clichès.