If you were to look up ‘Marmite’ in the dictionary, chances are you would be met with a mug shot of Lets Talk Daggers. The Eastbourne trio are certainly making a lot of noises, but are they the right noises?
On first listen of their new album ‘A Beautiful Life’, there is a strong chance you will either be instantly hooked, craving your next hit, or sitting back feeling slightly perplexed and wearing an expression akin to a Caveman who has been handed an iPad.
The lads have managed to pull off the difficult trick of not really falling into a specific genre. What do they sound like? Well, they sound like ‘Lets Talk Daggers’ and that’s fine by us. The album is explosive, aggressive, passionate, but also clever and produced in such a way that the raw, live- show energy is captured and not dumbed down for the purpose of the record. After listening to the album in full, you will genuinely feel like you’ve been at a show; breathless, ringing ears but longing for more.
Opening track ‘The Tin Man Expedition’ serves as an ominous and foreboding instrumental intro to the album. It builds steadily and smashes straight into ‘Brainkiller’, which after the relatively steady opening, is a musical kick in the teeth – just as you’ve started nodding along and settling in, the band come exploding out of the traps with unusual time signatures, vicious vocals and thunderous bass and drums. The track is manic, but perhaps slightly too manic. The production quality does let the track down, the distorted bass guitar seems to overpower the guitars, and the snare and cymbals are piercing in places. Unfortunately, this seems to be the theme throughout ‘A Beautiful Life’.
The band have clearly been ambitious. They seem to reinvent themselves with every track. One particular track of merit being ‘I Love You Dad But I’m Mental’ which incorporates hard-hitting punk riffs, but seamlessly leads into a Ska-esque bassline and brass section.
There is some respite from the anarchy in the form of the title track ‘A Beautiful Life’ which is a more considered and melodic number. The production seems to tighten up and the track offers a breather from the sonic barrage.
‘Lets Talk Daggers’ are clearly fantastic musicians and each track of ‘A Beautiful Life’ feels well thought out and well crafted. It’s certainly a rollercoaster, just when you feel as though you have a foothold, another gust of musical wind knocks you off balance and sends you sprawling. The album has something for everyone, if you’re a Rock or Metal fan, there will definitely be at least one track you can relate to. It is just unfortunate that the production quality has not done the lads justice.
The album serves well as an insight into the live show, but we feel as though this is where the band make sense; in a live environment. There’s no doubt at all that Lets Talk Daggers’ live show is mental, but this was always likely to be a challenge to recreate on record.
RICHARD BENNETT