Silver Columns : ‘Brow Beaten’
Released: Out Now!!!
Silver Columns are elusive – trust me, if you try to find out anything about this band the best you’ll get is a website in their name that in turn links you to understated MySpace pages and cryptic Twitter clues, they just simply don’t exist as a human entity, that's what I have decided. Therefore I can tell you nothing of their age, their number or their origins. Nor can I tell you how the met, where they grew up and what pets they have had and lost. What I can tell you though is that their/his/her release ‘Brow Beaten’ is a massive, massive song. And I do mean massive.
It starts with a 3-note synth lead line, joined in time by a pretty straight forward snap-snare drum beat that also brings along a bass for the ride once it’s settled in. The bass is understated but essential; it sits slightly apart from the other two and does its own thing almost oblivious to the part it’s playing in this dance-pop number. Then come the vocals, ‘Don’t blink your eyes, your eyes won’t blink’ – again they sit back a little, it’s as if nothing wants to enter prominence here, the song hangs out the back and gathers pace before it feels ready to explode. The vocal moves to a layered verse, high-pitched and smooth as silk, whilst other synths arrive from left and right. The song completely embodies anticipation; the build up to a climax that you know is going to sit right. That climax isn’t necessarily what you’d expect to follow the build-up, but it’s fantastic nonetheless - the synths just go into overdrive, the drums remain solid and the vocal exits briefly, only to re-emerge with the chorus line about eyes blinking and what-not. In the background the music is breaking-down in a trance like state, this song could be the end of that night you’ll never forget but it could also be the start as the computerised pop melodies are just so simple and yet so powerful that this song can do whatever you want it to do, whenever you want it to do it. And just when you think it’s about to take off again it lands, shunting to a holt as if someone pulled the plug on the computer and turned off the lights without the courtesy of a warning. All this does though is add to the swagger that befits any band happy enough to let their music do the talking without having already established their faces amongst the musical decision makers.
Then there's a b-side, a remix by Hot Chip's Joe Goddard that is a pleasant extra without doing anything crazy to what is a great song. Maybe Mr.Goddard knows who this lot are and where we can find them.
But when your first song sounds like this I don’t care who you are, where you come from or what your name is. You’re going to be huge.
9/10
Words: Benjamin Coley
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