Science
Knows No Sin
"Distance Holds Your Mystery..." CD
Science
Knows No Records
Genres: indie rock, psych pop
Feb 24 - Mar 2 2003 |
There
has been so much mediocre, nondescript, unoriginal indie rock made
lately, so when I received the Science Knows No Sin CD, Distance Holds Your Mystery..., I was pleasantly surprised
to find 11 melodic, compelling, mostly upbeat tunes. Sung by Susan
Margolis, the soothing vocals remind the listener of childhood and
all of the simple emotions associated with this time.
The first track, "Tidal Wave" is a catchy pop song. It is
the closest their music comes to being radio-friendly, yet it still
retains some of the band's somewhat offbeat rhythm and minor key
harmony that prevents their music from becoming unoriginal and boring.
The song is about the feeling of being completely taken over by the
beauty of music.
"Leo" is a much more subdued, interesting song. It is
more notable for its rhythm than its melody. This is the kind of song
that one can be completely hypnotized by, the kind of song that makes
you want to dance - not headbang, but really dance.
"Kaleidoscope" is a fun song. It is simple, and could
have been written by a child, but SKNS makes it work. Once
again they are saved by their style. This is in stark contrast to the
well-written "Ken's Rock", with its clever lyrics, and
rockability factor (think Fugazi-esque energy).
Distance Holds Your Mystery... is exciting, original,
accessible, pleasing, and sexy - if not a little bit too simple. They
often rely on their style, as opposed to good writing, to engage the
listener. But in this case, it's not necessarily a bad thing for
short-term listening, however don't be too surprised if after hearing
it a couple of times it gets monotonous.
78%
Lauren Shay
[Vitals: 11 songs, distributed by Amazon, released
2000] |