Marlboro Chorus

The Marlboro Chorus take their name from a group of sullen-faced sisters who spend their time sitting in the parlour smoking and gossiping. The sisters in question belong to a friend of the leader of the band, B. Patric — when playing live, he is joined on stage by three other people but his debut album is very much a solo project. Patric tries his utmost to emulate the bands that were an obvious influence on his musical career, such as the Beach Boys, David Bowie and other usual suspects. Good Luck is packed full of bouncy pop music that uses the acoustic guitar as the driving force behind most of the songs. Yet there is an underlying darkness that belies the happy appearance of the music, thanks to some lyrics that inhabit the ground between sarcasm and judgement. That translates into tales of infidelity, paranoia and persecution and makes for pop music that is at least more interesting than your typical indie pop. Unfortunately, Good Luck isn’t as successful as the first half of the album initially suggests, with the latter half dragging its heels and not pulling its weight when it comes to better tunes. Still, there is enough artistry on show to warrant at least keeping an eye on the Marlboro Chorus.