Greg Shaw proves once again that he had a wonderful knack for discovering and signing bands that can really rock. The Seattle-based foursome of Aubrey Nehring on guitars and vocals, Ian Barnett on bass, Janet Hurt on keyboards, and Adam Svenson on drums, offers a fantastic sound deeply rooted in 60s and 70s psychedelic. They have great energy, superb vocals, and a sound that really inspires you to get up and dance.
Laugh in the Dark is the perfect antidote for an awkwardly lame party, when everyone is just standing around quietly, not really saying or doing much. Throw this album on and I guarantee it will cause instant fun, excitement, and booty shaking no matter how dire the situation may have seemed.
From the opening licks of “Revelation”—screeching guitars, fantastic beats—you know this is a talented band. It’s loud, and it makes you both angry and yearning to dance all at the same time. The sounds of 1970s psychedelic rock are well appropriated on this track. It is catchy, and although it definitely has an edge, is just commercial enough that it could become a mainstream hit.
“Long Way” and “Monster Blues” reminded me of the White Stripes back when they were more concerned with making fantastic music than with Jack White’s seemingly endless succession of bizarre hairdos and celebrity girlfriends. The instrumental interlude in “Long Way” is intense, with amazing guitar riffs and throbbing drum beats. This song instilled in me a desire to bring back the head banging that was ever so popular in 1994.
At 16 songs, the album is quite long, but The Invisible Eyes never sacrifice the quality of the sound on any of the songs. “Luanne,” one of my favourite tracks, fills the requisite girl’s name-as-title song that seems to be increasingly popular these days. I also loved “Mother of Mystery;” it had me involuntarily tapping my foot in a very public and very crowded Starbucks, which is always a good sign for a rock tune.
Laugh in the Dark has a cohesive sound, but each track is strong enough to stand on its own. The music is at times angst-ridden and aggressive, but almost in a pop kind of way—like how no one could ever take Green Day’s anger too seriously. The songwriting is interesting, and I must admit way less generic that I had expected. Laugh in the Dark is a loud, fun, and accessible homage to old-school psychedelic that I would recommend picking up if you love bands that can truly rock out.
