Seachange

Welcome Seachange, a new addition to the scores of bands who pay homage to bands who paid homage to earlier bands. Singer Dan Eastop could easily be charged with impersonating Gavin Rossdale while his band does Interpol over a lone violin struggling admirably to add creative credibility. Lyrically, the band favours the angry young man approach, employing errant screams and lumps of coal like "Live like this/Be more like this/Listen to this/Get into this” on the wholly forgettable "Carousel.” To their credit, Seachange proves that, like most bands, they’re at their best when forging their own identity. "Come on Sister” is as serious as a mortal illness, but conflates modern rock with an 18th century aesthetic better than, say, prog-rock. And, to their credit, Seachange is far from Emerson, Lake and Palmer, avoiding the common scourge of debut album overproduction. Things are kept as spacious as one could expect from a sextet with song titles like "Anglokana” and "AvsCo10.” The latter, judging by title alone, is an ode to ex-Colorado Avalanche number ten, Serge Aubin. Of course, I’m being insincere and, largely, so is Seachange.