Artist: Spice Boys
Album: Glade
Label: Punk Slime Recordings
Released: 01/12/2018
RIYL: FIDLAR, WAVVES, Together PANGEA
Rate: 9/10
When I first heard of the band Spice Boys, I was immediately intrigued and “Wannabe” by Spice Girls starting playing in my head. To my surprise, the Spice Boys are nothing like their flavorful, female, predecessors. Spice Boys released their first EP in 2016. After signing to Punk Slime Recordings shortly after this, Spice Boys have blessed us with their newest album, Glade. The whole album is full of distortion of all aspects of the songs—the vocals, the guitar, even the drums sound more static-y than normal. This Swedish garage rock band’s sound makes me think of kicking up some trouble with my friends on the beach in the summer. The use of echoes and wa-wa-like effects in all of the tracks just gives the album a really fun-inspiring. The fast-paced and upbeat songs make you want to dance like a fool.
The album starts off with a track called “Spice City Boys” and if you have ever watched the Netflix series, Peaky Blinders, you’d understand why it would make a great addition to that soundtrack. The heavy drums and the organ-like effects on the guitar define Spice Boys’ rock sound. It’s a beat that lets you know the Spice Boys are here to wake you up and keep you up. The following track, “I Don’t Get Around,” is equally as great, but is slightly more melodic with long vocal cadences. It’s easy to hear and sing the lyrics to this track, but in others it is a little more challenging.
What’s really awesome to hear in “Citrus Blossom” is the sound of the ocean as the backdrop. You can even hear the seagulls and the instrumental music compliments the crashing of the waves. At the end of the track, the music becomes heavier, and the sound of car horns honking is added. This serves as a very cool transition in the next song, appropriately named “Cities.”
Another track that lovers of pop punk will appreciate is “Pizza Flavored Kisses,” which sounds like a psychedelic take on an oldie’s song. Lyrics such as, “keep on dreaming ’bout your hungry eyes/eats me up inside” really fits the song’s theme of food and love and are high-key relatable to that time you accidentally stared into your crushes’ eyes for way too long.
I gave this album a rating of 9/10 on the basis of repetitiveness. All of the tracks start to blend together at a certain point, otherwise the album is really cool. It’s evident that the members of Spice Boys are talented, but I would have liked to hear more variation in terms of style on their 13-track record. Anyways, if you’re one of those people like myself that listens to certain music in hopes of summer arriving sooner rather than later, give Glade a listen—it will bring you to your sunny-summer happy place. Glade gives off the feeling of being dazed and confused in the greatest possible way.
