Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever

how can this band be so good

Yes..

The first e.p sounds like they've alredy been around for ages.

WHOOSH, this album is just so thrillingly fine. I have to see them live in October.

The album is good.

Good is this album

Oh man I can't wait!

Saw them in Camden last month and had been really excited but it really put me off them tbh. Dunno whether it was a heaving venue full of aussie blokes, but they felt a bit boorish, there was no space in the music, they almost felt like a jam band, patiently taking turns for their solos. Was hoping for something elliptical, cryptic to them, but the Go Betweens influence seems pretty superficial.

The album makes me think War on Drugs way more than Go Betweens and that wasn't the case with the earlier stuff.

and better than WOD!

I thought about WOD too. But RBCF are Better indeed. If only because they don't take themselves so seriously and don't suffer from pretentiousness.

These guys seem to have one too many band names in their band name(?)

first release was as Rolling Blackouts, but apparently an american band of the same name objected, so they added CF.

pissed i missed seeing them earlier this year. think i slightly prefer the first ep.

― mizzell, Thursday, October 19, 2017 6:26 AM (seven months ago)

They should’ve rebranded as the Rolling, I dunno, “Stones”

listening to the new one for the first time right now. initial thoughts: Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - the best band since the smiths

Saw them in Camden last month and had been really excited but it really put me off them tbh. Dunno whether it was a heaving venue full of aussie blokes, but they felt a bit boorish, there was no space in the music, they almost felt like a jam band, patiently taking turns for their solos. Was hoping for something elliptical, cryptic to them, but the Go Betweens influence seems pretty superficial.

Will give this a spin though.

LOL. Two things can be true. We are all desperate for a good indie rock band, and RBCF would be fantastic no matter when they came out.

Really nice album, but two songs -"Talking Straight" and "Mainland" - are just 'amazing wowwow holy shit' good

This strikes me as a very “Sub Pop” band/record.

Surprised to be getting "Creation/Sarah/Subway/etc guitar bands circa 1987" sort of vibes from some of the new tracks.

It sounds like a slightly peppier Real Estate.

this is really good. i also noticed the real estate chord struck. fanatical midtempoism and maybe guitar tone. also similar, even when a couple of songs are inevitably slight or underwritten, they just sound good. first 5 songs are cap g Great, little spotty after that but still some keepers particularly the closer.

I came to the conclusion the e.p's were better

Same.

Don't get me wrong though- the record is pretty great. But...

Yeah EPs are better but they are still a great band and will make much more excellent music.

I wish Time In Common was longer. Definitely my favorite song on Hope Downs.

I like "Air-Conditioned Man" and the somewhat atypical "Cappuccino City" more than anything on the EPs. Such that I even bought a physical copy, which virtually never happens.

they felt a bit boorish, there was no space in the music...
Everything bled over the top of everything else so that each song was practically indistinguishable...“are we that desperate for a good indie rock band in 2018 that we’re salivating over THAT?

I'm excited to see supremely b***y comments like this, because I believe it means the band has arrived! They may not be making any magazine covers or headlining festivals within the year, but it's a start. I think the album is an improvement over the EPs. They are touring hard too, doing their second North American tour of the year this fall. When I saw them in April, the sound was crystal clear, plenty of separation. It was a small room with great acoustics. Perhaps the venues had shit sound? Or, since guitars have been so fashionable in pop and indie for a while, some brains aren't used to processing all the multiple tones snaking from three guitars?

http://fastnbulbous.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/rbcf-schubas-2018-05-02.png

"Sisters Jeans" and "How Long?" just sit there. Often their sound is so attractive that I mistake it for songs. I listen to "Bellarine," "Talking Straight," and "Cappuccino City" all the time, though.

i love sisters jeans! conversely, that's exactly how i feel about bellarine, which could've been a great song with a bit more work on it, but as it is is mostly raw materials

I love Sisters Jeans and Bellarine. Conversely, that's how I feel about How Long and Cappuccino City.

clearly the takeaway here is there is something for everyone, and they ought to have done better with how long

...and added a couple minutes to Time in Common.

you're not talking straight!

"There's fire in the west, I never did my best"

This lyrics ruin the song foe me

I only listen to songs 1-4,8,10 from the LP. Time in Common is thr best indeed. More post punk than pop. When they are less sugar-y they are beteer

Agreed re "How Long?". I'm increasingly skipping that now.

"Exclusive Grave"--the one track I haven't seen mentioned by name--is quite attractive. A rare instance where I can actually hear the Go-Betweens vibe alleged in most reviews.

Is that the one that sounds a bit like "Secondhand Furniture"?

^ Something like that! Very much 1983-84 model GBs anyway.

This album's major flaw is ending with the two least good songs.

Not really. The Hammer (last song) is great.

+1

It's good, yeah.

Also, Fran Keaney is the best songwriter out of the three

which is which?

they don't use credits, right?

Yeah they don't use credits. Just based on youtube videos

..assuming the singer is also the songwriter

To the best of my knowledge:

Fran Keany sings Wither Where You, and sort of sounds like Robert Forster. On new one he sings Time in Common and Air Conditioned Man

Joe Russo sings my alltime favorite, Heard You’re Moving. On new one he sings Mainland and Sisters Jeans.

Joe White sings Wide Eyes. On new one he sings Talking Straight and Bellarine.

This is the first band since The White Stripes where I’ve even bothered learning the band members names

band's publicist sent me this:

An Air Conditioned Man – Fran
Talking Straight - Joe W
Mainland – Tom
Time in Common – Fran
Sister’s Jeans – Fran
Bellarine – Joe W
Cappuccino City - Tom
Exclusive Grave – Tom
How Long? – Joe W
The Hammer – Tom

these guys should really take up the art of the 10 minute jam

they have a number of songs that remind me of shoegaze with less volume and more jangle, they could totally lean into that