NEW ALBUM: Marriages – Salome
When I decided to listen to Salome, Marriages first full length studio album (after the 2012 released EP Kitsune), I just went through the list of titles and picked the one that was at that very moment most appealing to me Love, Texas – just having come back from Austin, TX… Into the first few guitar strums, I was already hooked! What I heard sounded familiar, yet new and then again… like a big, smooth comforting embrace, until Emma Ruth Rundle’s voice becomes more urgent and pressing, howling Your touch like sunscreen // Kept me from burning…
By then, I wanted more and started to listen to Salome from Liar, track one, to track nine Contender plus the two superb bonus tracks Under Will and Haze of Slate. From there on, I enjoyed the album many more times on repeat, yet I was always surprised how little I liked the opening track in comparison to all the others. Only when I came across Marriages’ live session and video to The Liar (scroll down) I could truly hear what a great song, in addition to all the other ones, Liar is. For me, the muted recording doesn’t do the material justice and I wish I could hear Emma Ruth Rundle’s voice more clearly on more tracks.
Admittedly, I have not -yet- bought the vinyl version of Salome and only listened to it online respectively via subscription, so here’s hope that the version on the physical record will be crisper and less muted. I am pretty certain though that Salome will receive a spot in my Top 10 Albums of 2015 list, together with Swervedriver’s I Wasn’t Born To Loose You and The Districts A Flourish and a Spoil.
While Salome is a dark, moody album that at times makes you long for a breeze of fresh air, it is also a deeply satisfying album with a lot of room for discovery. It should appeal to anyone who digs The Cure, Souxie and the Banchees, My Bloody Valentine and the likes. This said, Marriages definitely sound very much rooted in 2015, with Emma Ruth Rundle providing the vocals and playing the lead guitar, Gregory Burns adding keyboards and bass, and Andrew Clinco defining the rhythm and tempo. Follow Marriages on Facebook and/or Twitter to stay updated.
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