Lithium Magazine

Vagrant Records

By Mike Bax

Let it be said that Matthew Hayward, Russell Marsden and Emma Richardson of Band Of Skulls are three of the hardest working musicians I've encountered over the last few years. Their debut album, 2009's Baby Darling Doll Face Honey, hasn't left my regular rotation of oft-played albums since the first day I heard it, and the band toured that album HARD in North America, earning their audience one live show at a time the old fashioned way. Sweet Sour, the band’s second and most recent album is destined for the same fate if my first few plays of the ten songs comprising the album are any indication at all.

The trio of Southampton youngsters have once again melded some clever jams lifting from soul, blues, indie-pop and rock to craft their sophomore release. If the band felt any trepidation about trying to top their debut, it isn't apparent at all on Sweet Sour. If anything, their new material sounds bigger and bolder, with tracks like 'Bruises', 'Sweet Sour' and 'The Devil Takes Care of His Own' being the most obvious of commercial material this time around.

If you are scratching your head now, wondering why Band of Skulls feels like a name you've maybe heard before, the band had a well-placed single on the second Twilight soundtrack. They also scored a successful iTunes 'Pick Of The Week' single in North America and had material from Baby Darling Doll Face Honey appear on a few hot television shows (like HBO's True Blood) in North America. If there is to be any resonance at all in this pop culture sense it would likely be the utilization of 'Light of The Morning' over a slick looking Mustang ad which ran across many prime time channels for well over a month, causing the single to bump in popularity online as music fans Googled the ad to find out who did the song attached to it.

The obvious bands that Band of Skulls will take comparisons to are The Black Keys and The White Stripes, with all three acts delivering their own unique attempts at modernizing roots and blues music. In fact, any fan of either the Keys or the Stripes will be hard-pressed to find a reason to NOT like Band of Skulls. I'm still trying to figure out how the band didn't blow right up as of their first album - one that I feel holds up to some of the finest material from their two much more popular compatriots.

With an upcoming show at The Phoenix (Toronto) coming up and an album as RED HOT as Sweet Sour to lift songs from, it's just a matter of time before this most excellent band is headlining stadiums all over the globe.

Check out there material at the links below:

www.bandofskulls.com
www.facebook.com/bandofskulls
twitter.com/BandofSkulls
www.myspace.com/bandofskulls