Erase You by Bleeker (2016)
Title:
I don’t think the title track they chose is the best song on the album, but the title is cool and it works well as the album introduction.
Album Art:
His face is being erased by the band’s name – get it? All joking aside, I like the minimalist colour palette and the overexposed photo effect they went with for the artwork. I’m a little less sold on the font choices, but as a whole I don’t have any major grievances.
Overall:
Is this yet another case of Canadian Band Syndrome or do I just live under a rock because I only found out these guys existed embarrassingly recently. Turns out Bleeker hails from Ontario (which for my non-Canadians friends out there is pretty far from my home province of BC so cut me a break on not knowing them) and they make some pretty kick-ass tunes. The whole record is full of big fuzzy-wuzzy guitar sounds that you can’t help but move to. I don’t think this record is doing anything particularly revolutionary, but if you like that Black Keys kind of vibe where the guitars sound like a wall covered in shag carpeting coming towards your face at 100 km/h, then Bleeker might just be for you.
Track By Track:
1. Highway
Right out of the gate, Highway shows off everything that this band does really well. It’s got the big fuzzed-out guitar sounds, it’s got the catchy clap-along-dance-along melodies, and its letting you know right away that this album is going to be a whole lot of fun.
2. Free
Free starts off with a fun little blues-adjacent intro which is then devoured by the punchy, driving guitars and some really cool drumming. Thematically, this is a driving-into-the-sunset-with-middle-fingers-raised-good-riddance-to-your-ex kind of song with a suitably catchy, shout-along friendly chorus.
3. Getting Out
Can someone please comment and tell me what “peppermint hill” means? All I’m getting from Google is a hiking trail in Australia – which is cool and all, but seems out of place in a rock song written by dudes from Ontario. Peppermint aside, Getting Out is the first track that tones the instrumentation back just enough to show off more vocal range from singer Taylor Perkins. Never fear though, between the lyrics Getting Out is still chock-full of massive guitar and drum sounds. This song does suffer a little bit from having a slightly lopsided verse-to-chorus ratio that makes it feel a little long towards the end, adding another verse or cutting that last chorus would have tightened it up nicely.
4. Erase You
The title track feels a little more complicated compared to the previous three tracks and the change-up keeps the album engaging. The intro in particular is very cool with a thinner sounding guitar slithering in under a whispery vocal line like smoke through a crack in the wall. The little pauses between the various sections of the song also work well – maybe a little White Stripes influence at work? Mr. Perkins gives the listener another show on this one, busting out some seriously big notes especially compared to the more subdued vocals earlier in the album.
5. I’m Not Laughing Now
Ready your lighters folks, we may have a ballad on our hands. Not Laughing Now continues the more complex song structure from the previous track – just listen to that synth build-up into the guitar break and the funky little triangle-type noise (I believe that’s a synth as well, but I may be wrong). I’m also a big fan of the way the vocals and the instrumentation all kick into high gear at the same time during the chorus, it creates a great sense of tension and release that makes you want to hear it again. The lyrics feel like a release of tension too – like the stress of actually ending the relationship is over and now you might feel awful, but there’s nothing left you can do (except write a really good song about it).
6. Still Got Love
Still Got Love gets us back in high gear after the more introspective vibe of Erase You and Not Laughing Now. This one pairs a simple yet timeless rock song message – that all you need in life is someone you love, a drink, and some good tunes – with a massive sound. The drums, in particular, sound huge on this track which lends itself to being extremely clap-along-able. I’ve never seen this band live, but I bet this one would make a killer encore or last song for a live set when the crowd’s all hopped up on atmosphere and good vibes.
7. Radio Radio
The only song on this album that could be called even vaguely political, Radio Radio uses a relentless drum attack to urge the listener not to trust the narrative pushed by the people in power via mainstream radio. Fittingly for a song with a clear message, this one is more vocal-driven then most of the other tracks and it fades out with a fizzy radio-static effect.
8. Where’s Your Money
I don’t love the falsetto effect on the majority of the vocals in the chorus, especially because some of the lower sections have some genuinely interesting grit and vocal flexibility that gets lost as soon as the over-affected high parts come back in. Rather than the expansive wall of sound guitar-style we’ve heard elsewhere, Where’s Your Money treats the strings like another source of percussion, compressing the sound so that it stomps instead of swinging.
9. Emergency
When I listen to this album I don’t immediately pin it as having been released in 2016, until I get to Emergency. There’s some quality to this song, especially noticeable during the chorus sections, that feels very mid-2010s-alt-radio to me.
10. Close My Eyes
Close My Eyes is hoping-against-hope little plea to try and salvage a relationship that the narrator knows is already doomed. It’s not a particular standout for me, but I do like the “lifted” quality of the guitar sound.
11. Every Time You Call
This is how to end an album and keep your audience wanting more. After the slower Close My Eyes, it brings back some of the energy from earlier in the record. That driving, intense guitar and drum attack is back with a vengeance and lets you know from the opening chords that there’s still some gas in this tank. I love the decision to really drive the album home with the last track rather than letting it fade away with something like Close My Eyes, that kind of intelligent track arrangement gives a nice sense of closure when you listen to the album as a whole. The little acoustic break midway through the song calls right back to Close My Eyes, but is short enough not to feel too repetitive – it’s also used as an excuse to sneak in a few more drum flourishes. They saved the best for last vocals-wise, as this is the most emotional we’ve heard Taylor Perkins and those last few “gonna crawl” refrains sound gut-wrenching.