Album Review: Talk Tight

Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever’s debut EP, Talk Tight, is a must listen for fans of the pop/punk or indie rock genres. This breakout EP shows off the band’s potential, with Tom Russo and Joe White’s roaring guitars and Fran Keaney’s soft, yet rigid vocals. The spritely, almost hectic and bustling sound is rounded out by the constant melodic rhythms of the bass and drums played by Joe Russo and Marcel Tussie respectively.

Each song comes with its own distinctive yet familiar sound, tying them together and setting them apart simultaneously. Each song is infectious and great individually. They come together to form a notable EP. As the band’s first EP, it made waves in their home country, Australia, before making its way across the ocean to the US, to be fished up by Seattle based record company, Sub Pop. 

https://www.subpop.com/artists/rolling_blackouts_coastal_fever

Lyrically, Talk Tight seems to recount memories of past and current lover(s) that have come and gone, like in the songs “Wide Eyes”, “Heard You Were Moving”, and “Write Back”. It also tells of restarting, the reality of life, and the harshness of growing up, leaving dreams behind, as told by the songs “Clean Slate” and “Career”. It’s constant conflict behind otherwise bright and light-hearted instrumentals, which can also be tied back to themes of self doubt. Its relatability to young adults, on a coming of age level, is pleasant and real, reminding us that it’s just a part of life to deal with young love and to grow confidence in one’s own abilities.

However good these songs may be, sometimes the lyrics felt a bit clunky, like they were forced in to some extent, revealing the freshman aspect of the songwriting, but it’s such a minor detail that is doesn’t affect the flow of any of the songs in a major way, nor does it detract from the work as a whole.

Checking out this EP is a great way to familiarize yourself with this band’s early works as you work through their journey, with their newer EPs/albums, of which there are two, the EP, The French Press (2017) and the debut album, Hope Downs (2018). As for this EP, I’d give it a solid 8/10. It was an honest first attempt, with some room for improvement, but not a shabby first go of things!