Eskju Divine
Darkness all around
Imperial Recordings
The melody of the first song sounds very similar the opening track on Tiger Lou's album, but it's taken in a much more polyphonic and embellished direction. Lead singer/songwriter Gustaf Spetz's voice has a similar timbre to Tiger as well. Both play excellent melancholic pop music, but Eskju Divine adds much more bombast and reverb to the proceedings. The wall-of-sound production also lends them a much more dreamy vibe, which is both good and bad. Good because it makes even the most simple passages of music more powerful, but bad because it also means the EP can pass by without leaving much of an impression, if not being listened to at full volume. This piano, bass and drums trio never falters for lack of a guitar either. In fact, it never even occurred to me that the instrument wasn't there until I read the group's bio. Good stuff.
- Avi Roig