The Black Rabbits EP Review: Pop With a Touch of Dark
A couple of months ago I received an email from longtime friend and The New (formerly AKA) bassist, Nat Smallish, telling me that she's been playing in a side project called The Black Rabbits, and asked if I could check them out.
The name The Black Rabbits is taken from Richard Adams' seminal Watership Down (according to their website). In the book, The Black Rabbit is a mythical grim reaper in the rabbit's religion that comes to collect the souls of the rabbits at the pre-determined time of their death.
Thankfully, The Black Rabbits are not quite that morbid, but do still hold onto the concept held within their band name, i.e. the cuteness of rabbits and the morbidness (or mystery) of the color black.
Musically, their sound falls in with the recent Garage Revival movement, similar to The Killers, Kings of Leon, or The Vines. The Black Rabbits, though, simplify the sound even more, evoking something closer to the Garage Rock bands of the 60's, like The Animals, rather than the dance, Southern Rock, or punk infused versions of the previously mentioned bands.
This sound isn't too unfamiliar in Miami. During the early phases of the original Garage rock movement in the 1960's, Miami's own The Birdwatchers made some waves (even though they only reached #125 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Charts), and interestingly have a similar sound to The Black Rabbits:
But, the "black" and "rabbit" contrast doesn't come in to play until you pay attention to the lyrics of each song. While each has it's own unique quality, they do all tend to hover on particular themes of heartbreak, rebellion, and angst. When sung with the melodic and slow paced garage sound, it creates an interesting dynamic of pop music with dark themes (like The Shins).
The EP starts off with Hurry, Hurry, an ultra slimmed down rock beat with a complicated and troubled story line. The song tells of a typical rushing teenage and early 20's relationship, trying to hurry while not being focused on your partner. Of course, the chorus puts the story completely in perspective, "Always like that, so hurry, hurry back."
In other words, young relationships have a frenzied pace to them, both good and bad, both fighting and getting back together, but isn't that how it always goes?
The second track is For Way Too Long Now, another song facing the nature of disconnected relationships. It's said best in the lines: "I don't care what you doin', I don't care what you sayin'... where did you go? I don't know." Jetson Black (lead singer and songwriter) also throws in a bunch of harmonic female sung "do do do"'s, to further accentuate the black lyrics against the rabbit sound.
Skipping forward to the fourth track is Emotion, my personal favorite off the album. The first line of the song declares, "We never wanted this," but then twists it right up with the next line, "To end like it did."
The single line chorus is completely brilliant, "Emotion, emotion, a little bit emotion, how do you like that?" Even though the lyrics seem mundane, they are sung in a way that almost fits in perfectly with the stereotypical childish, "na-ny-na-ny-boo-boo-stick-your-head-in-doo-doo". Then, Jetson follows up with, "how do you like that?"
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This song pulls together The Black Rabbit theme better than any other song on the album. Taking the complicated message of exposuring emotions and feelings, but done in such a childish way that it just tears away any sort of maturity that could be entailed in it.
The last song is Painter, Poet, Profit, Priest, which is Jetson's declaration of personal awareness. It drops the feel of the other songs and is just an acoustic guitar with a bit of Kim Drake's (organ, piano, vocals) organs behind his singing.
Painter, Poet, Profit, Priest answers what it means to be a Black Rabbit. Poetically painting words, beauty, and emotions in a prophetic and insightful way, while asking for hope and faith, like a Priest.
Considering this is just their first EP, I'm sitting in my pew waiting for more of the good word. Great job, and thanks to Nat for the heads up (and keep an eye out for my upcoming interview with her and bandmate Lori Garrote of The New).
LINKS
The Black Rabbits website (www.theblackrabbits.com)
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