Album Review: The 69 Eyes - West End
Back in the good old days, many a music fan discovered new music by going to the local record store flicking through the albums and taking home an album whose art work had grabbed their attention. Whilst the quality of album artwork has never diminished, in this digital age its importance in helping the listener discover new music has certainly lessened.
Thus, when The 69 Eyes latest album crosses our desks at The Razor’s Edge it stood out by a mile. The sleek, jet black album cover, five black balloons melting into the back ground and the prominent purple horror film inspired font made it jump out. Hence it was top of the pile when it came to albums we must review.
Harking back to the good old days, I’d put on the album to listen based purely off the cover art. The 69 Eyes are a band that I’ve never crossed paths with, and doing research I have to wonder why? Having been established in 1989 they now have an illustrious 30 year career in the bag and from today they have won over a new fan.
Their latest album ‘West End’ gets its release this September, the bands 13th studio album. Opening with ‘Two Horns Up’ you get the feel of the band immediately. Gothic rock, a hint of heavy metal and maybe a little punk thrown in for good measure.
However, it’s hard to ignore the elephant in the room and it would be wrong for me to do so; there is a very heavy influence of The Sisters of Mercy in their sound. Less so in their opener which has a modern, edgy feel. But as we move on through ‘27 & Done’ and through the rest of the album that Sisters sound is there. Keyboards, vocals and song writing all show the bands influence. But to have that inspiration is not a bad thing. The 69 Eyes have taken that sound and developed upon it, using it as a foundation on which to build their own more modern style.
The album fluctuates in pace, from the slow melodic ballad of ‘Change’ to the faster paced more aggressive ‘Burn Witch Burn’. The latter’s throbbing base line sucking you into a story before the punchy chorus has you singing along without even realising it.
‘Cheyenne’, some what of a love song, dripping with lashings of that aforementioned Sisters of a mercy inspiration, blends nicely into the fast paced angst of ‘The Last House on the Left’. Throughout the recording the haunting vocals are hypnotic in their nature, fixating your thoughts as you listen along, keyboards and guitars building on that to encapsulate the listener.
This band, whilst potentially new to a number of us, builds their reputation and will certainly build upon their fan base. ‘West End’ as an album perfectly captures the modern day gothic rock sound. If yours a fan of the Sisters of Mercy I can guarantee you’ll love it.
The 69 Eyes album 'West End' is released on September 13th via Nuclear Blast.
