Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Haunting Beauty, 8 Sep 2006
This is one of the wonderful creations that gently seeps into your consciousness without you really noticing it.
I was drawn in initially by the sweeping chorus of Setting Sun, which is a real spine tingler. When you realise that this doesn't appear til track 9 (of 12) it gives a fair indication of the quality that precedes it (and what follows too).
The range of possible influences is wide: The Go-Betweens, Throwing Muses, Sundays, PJ Harvey, Yeah Yeah Yeahs have all been previously (understandably) mentioned, but I can also hear the likes of the Rain Parade, All About Eve, The Bad Seeds and even the Cocteau Twins (some of the etherial guitar lines) in there. It's an intoxicating mix with a degree of a throwback to the 80's goth scene, mixed with a little folk, country and some wonderfully infectious and atmospheric chorus lines.
It's fair to say that it's unlikely to leap out and grab you completely on the first listen. I'm on about the tenth now and it's really starting to blow me away.
If you've heard (and liked), Setting Sun, Broken Bones or Wishing Stone on MTV2 or such, then I'd thoroughly recommend the rest. Persevere, it's a very rewarding listen.
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11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Moody, haunting and uplifting., 18 April 2006
Continuing Australia's rich heritage of fascinations with gothic culture, Howling Bells make blissful music with a dark and seamy underbelly. Their self-titled debut - released by Bella Union and produced by Coldplay producer, Ken Nelson - is variably uplifting, moody and haunting.
Opener, The Bell Hit is a gentle indication of the pacific melancholia that follows, and is followed by Velvet Girl, a slightly woozy and casually unsettling pop song, which recalls the inert psychedelia of Sister Lovers-era Big Star.
At the forefront of these opening tracks, and the remainder of the album, are Juanita Stein's astonishing vocals. Comparisons with PJ Harvey, while lazy, aren't too far wide of the mark. Her lilting swoon glides and swoops over almost the entire album, but on Broken Bones, she raises the pitch and completely lets loose. While the track is a somewhat traditional tale of a broken heart ("broken bones may hurt / but a broken heart will never mend."), Stein delivers the words with such power and such conviction that you look past the lyrical shortcomings; it's a trick that Stein repeats on Low Happening, the track with the album's outstanding chorus. As if to prove her versatility, Stein turns down the volume and raises the tenderness on A Ballad For The Bleeding Hearts, a glowing country song.
From the brooding Setting Sun to the almost whimsical, The Night Is Young, Howling Bells offer a stunningly dazed rock n' roll that fans of My Bloody Valentine and Mazzy Star would be well advised to check out at the closest opportunity.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Hell's Bells, 29 Dec 2006
This is a very confident, consistent debut. The female vocals (resembling an evil twin of The Sundays) and the great guitar work are picked out by some very slick production, creating a beguiling album, full of twists and dark corners.
I agree with the comment from Piperboy that "Velvet Girl" should be later on in the track listing, but even so, it's a very good debut. "Setting Sun", "The Night Is Young" and "Low Happening" are standout tracks and this would have been my favourite debut of the year if some lads from Sheffield hadn't gone and brought out a blinding LP.
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