Sons And Daughters
This Gift

THE REVIEW

In the bubbling cauldron of the so-called independent music, Sons And Daughters were a small and pleasant discovery for me.

For those unfamiliar with the musical offering of these four young Scots, know that their production is characterized by sustained and folkish rhythms, but played with a decidedly Punk attitude. Punchy guitars and a solid bass are the trademarks of the group's sound, along with an intertwining of female (predominant) and male vocals that nod heavily to the Psychedelic pop of the Sixties (the name of the band should be grandiloquent in this sense).

They debuted with a very short and fun album -Love the Cup- that heavily drew from other Folk Punk entities, first and foremost the Violent Femmes. The second effort, titled The Repulsion Box, despite its brevity, proved to be a great album, catchy and compact, almost reassuring in how it faintly reminded one of the early works of the Patti Smith Group.

Compact indeed. 

Perhaps too much.

If one chooses to critique The Repulsion Box, it must focus on a certain monotony in the structure of the songs. Additionally, that little firecracker Adele Bethel didn't make much of an effort to vary her vocal tone, resulting in all the tracks inevitably sounding alike, approached as they were with uniform anger and energy. Saving the day was a splendid and Morricone-esque "Rama Lama" performed by the masculine voice of Scott Paterson, which almost completely diverged from the album's offering.

This Gift attempts to fill the gaps of its predecessor: definitively distancing (unfortunately?) the specter of the Femmes, Sons and Daughters achieve a full and characteristic sound, the songs are more varied and irresistibly catchy, the vocal performances finally cease to be monotonous and are enriched with nuances and personality, without losing an ounce of their grit.

It's hard to find a track superior to the others: This Gift suffers from "Paranoid syndrome", and very much resembles an effective collection of singles.

Recommended album. Even if the genre does not fall within your usual listening habits, give it a chance: it might surprise you.