Letter Kills - The Bridge
Letter Kills have definitely brought originality back to the front burner of music. Fresh and exuberant, sound they had a mission in mind to provide some change and originality from the often watered down music that fills the airwaves
When it comes to innovation and originality in music, the concept seems to be a lost art. Why be original with your music when you can easily rip off a currently successful formula? I mean, how many bands today sound so similar that you can’t even tell the difference? It is much easier for bands to take their influences within music and incorporate them into their sound; which in effect, is really just some slight variation of their musical influences. It happens all the time. It can best be addressed as an endless cycle that now includes prepping yourself with an image, a face-lift, and a makeover in hip clothes and crazy hairdos. It is becoming tiring and with each passing day, originality is fading away down a dead end road.
All is not lost. There is one band that is abruptly turning the car around and that band is Letter Kills. The music on their Island debut, The Bridge, offers a combination of inventiveness with powerful, potent melodies and sing-along choruses layered over guitars and music of early rock and roll.
The first thing that jumps out at you with Letter Kills is the double guitar combination that brings you back to the rock and roll days of AC/DC. Timothy Cordova and Dustin Lovelis, the guitarists of Letter Kills, really have carved out a guitar-driven hard rock sound that pound away relentlessly. The guitar work incorporates a pinch of punk infused hardcore that makes the sound a little sterner and a tad more gripping than 70’s style rock and roll. They also integrate some thriving guitar solos into the mix, which also bring up that nostalgic flair of the genre. It is a neat sound that definitely energizes the vigor and intensity of the music. The drums and bass lay low throughout the release but they do enough to keep everything stable while holding the music together; which is not overlooked.
The vocals of Matt Shelton really sit in a class of their own. His voice perfectly compliments the music behind him. The vocals are razor-sharp and unforgettable yet compelling enough to add some fire on top of the rock and roll bashing guitar sounds. Shelton’s vocals also have a tendency to speed up really quickly in machinegun like fashion. This really makes his vocals innovative and special. I’ve never heard anyone pull off his quick change of pace vocals in such an easy listening fashion.
Letter Kills have definitely brought originality back to the front burner of music. Fresh and exuberant, sound they had a mission in mind to provide some change and originality from the often watered down music that fills the airwaves. The ironic part of it is- if a band wanted to resemble Letter Kills, they wouldn’t know where to start. It’s safe to say that Letter Kills and uniqueness go hand in hand.
(Island Records)