Attention all drummers: Independent rock outfit The Swaggerlies is looking for someone to become its next drummer. Anyone who is interested in taking over the drum throne for the band is encouraged to contact the group through its official Facebook page. Of course, potential applicants should take a listen to some of the band’s work first, not the least of which being the band’s recently released EP, Undoing. Released independently by the band this past February, the four-song record is a fun follow-up to the band’s 2021 debut album, Last of the One and Onlys, which the band also released independently. The 13-minute record’s engagement and entertainment comes in part through its featured musical arrangements, which will be addressed shortly. The record’s lyrical content makes for its own share of interest and will be examined a little later. The EP’s production rounds out the record’s most important elements and will also be addressed later, as it brings everything full circle. Each item noted here is important in its own way to the whole of the record. All things considered they make Undoing a welcome addition to this year’s field of new EPs.
Undoing, the latest studio recording from independent rock outfit The Swaggerlies, is a largely successful new offering from the band. Its success comes in part through the musical arrangements presented across its 13-minute run time. From beginning to end, the arrangements exhibit a blend of garage, stoner and even some blues-based rock. It is hardly the first time that any rock act has blended those elements for a record or even a song, but in the case of this record, that combination of leanings makes for four songs that are fully immersive if only for their musical content. As if that is not enough, the band even adds a subtle touch of punk influence in the EP’s penultimate entry, ‘Tie Me To Your Tracks.’ That punk influence is also exhibited in the EP’s closer, ‘Bandwagon.’ Speaking more specifically, that song exhibits quite the influence of The Ramones, ensuring even more, its enjoyment (and that of the EP overall). All things considered, the musical arrangements featured throughout this record make for reason enough for audiences to hear this EP.
The musical arrangements featured throughout Undoing are just part of what makes this record successful. The lyrical themes that accompany that content add their own share of interest. The social commentary featured in the record’s opener, ‘Undoing To Do’ makes that fully clear. This as front man Earle Thunders sings about the need to continue fighting the racism and bigotry that is still so prevalent in America. He sings in the song’s lead verse and chorus, “Our original sins/Are coming home to roost/Recycled lies for an ugly truth/Idiot’s pride/Tired story again/Worth about as much as a cheater’s win/Same old song/That we thought was brand new/We’ve got some undoing to do/Playin’ a part in the American ruse/We’ve got some undoing to do.” This clearly addresses the noted problems that have got to be fought, especially put alongside the song’s video, which also addresses the problems addressed therein.
Thunders continues the commentary in the song’s second verse as he sings, “It’s hard to breathe/Held by the neck/400 years of a long, slow wreck/Now every life matters/Well it’s easy to say/But when your skin is a crime/It don’t feel that way/Blood on our hands and blood in our roots/We’ve got some undoing to do/Hate in the trees and the cross and the noose/We’ve got some undoing to do.” That is a pretty clear statement. He adds in the song’s third and final verse, “when the lights go out/We’re all the same/Love shouldn’t hurt and love doesn’t choose/We’ve got some undoing to do.” Thunders’ commentary resonates loud and clear here. He is right. When the lights go out, we are all the same. This even applies in metaphorical sense with “the light” being our lives. So it can be interpreted to also mean when we die, we’re all the same, and that is true. The only difference is our skin color. What’s more, love should not hurt and we do not control who we love, either. To that end, this continued commentary that is overall, about diversity and accepting diversity rings loud and clear here, showing clearly the importance of the EP’s lyrical content.
‘Undoing To Do’ is just one example of the importance of the EP’s lyrical content. ‘Group Death Stare’ is another example of that importance. Now not having lyrics to reference for this one, it forces one to listen far more closely. Not everything can be deciphered sans lyrics, but from what can be understood, this song comes across as a commentary of sorts about mob mentality and its role in how people react (largely negatively). This is inferred as Thunders sings, “It’s not what you meant/It’s what you said/I guessed your intent/And now the meaning’s dead/Gonna shut you down/Gonna pull your chain/Gonna make you wish…” the last portion of that lead verse is difficult to decipher sans lyrics what with the mix here.
From there, the band sings in the chorus what sounds like “Do you feel it stabbing through the air/If looks could kill/Then you’d be dead right there/Do we mean it/Do we even care/We want blood/Group death stare.” Much of the song’s second verse is difficult to decipher, but it can be understood when Thunders sings sarcastically, “Now we’re all fine/We’re all saved/A perfect world/With perfect…” Again, that last part is tough to understand thanks to the mix. That aside, what can be inferred with this and the content in the song’s lead verse is perhaps a commentary about how people have a tendency toward acting in mob fashion without really thinking, which is why Thunders asks in the lead-in to the verses, “Do we mean it/Do we even care?/We want blood/Group Death Stare.” That added statement of shutting someone down perhaps means the subject is going to stop those close-minded people. It would seem to fit overall here, but again this is all just this critic’s own interpretation. If in fact this is all really the case, then the whole makes the song’s lyrical content just as interesting and insightful as that in the EP’s opener and more proof of the importance of the record’s lyrical content.
When the lyrical themes featured throughout this EP are considered alongside the record’s musical content, the whole therein makes the EP all the more worth hearing. It is, collectively, just part of what makes the record worth hearing, too. The production that went into the EP is of its own note. While not perfect, the production does do well to balance the instrumentation in each track. There are some issues with the instrumentation overpowering the vocals at points. As noted, there are points in the record in which understanding the lyrics is difficult sans lyrics to reference. That difficulty comes because at the noted points, Thunders’ vocals do blend into the instrumentation. Thankfully this is not so much of an issue that it dooms the EP. For the most part the production does prove positive. It results in a mostly positive aesthetic to the presentation. To that end, when it combines with the EP’s songs and lyrical content, the whole makes Undoing a mostly successful follow-up to Last of the One and Onlys and a welcome addition to this year’s field of new EPs.
Undoing, the recently released EP from The Swaggerlies, is a mostly positive new offering from the independent rock outfit that deserves to be heard at least once. That is due in part to its featured musical arrangements. The arrangements expertly blend elements of punk, blues, and garage rock for a whole that is sure to keep listeners engaged and entertained from beginning to end of the 13-minute record. The lyrical themes, though sometimes difficult to decipher sans a lyrics sheet to reference, are understandable enough to be able to infer some commentary in each work. From what can be understood, that commentary makes for reason enough to take in the EP, especially being that each changes the overall topic. The production puts the finishing touch to the EP, ensuring at least that the instrumentation is expertly balanced in each arrangement. Given at times, the vocals do get bogged down by the instrumentation, but for the most part, a close listen makes it at least relatively possible to understand the songs’ messages. Each item examined makes for its own important part of this EP. All things considered they make Undoing deserving of being heard at least once.
Undoing is available now. More information on the EP is available along with all of The Swaggerlies’ latest news and more at:
Website: https://theswaggerlies.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Swaggerlies/100063592445877/
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