
On their Myspace bio (albeit brief but you get the point), Texas sibling (and one cousin) rock outfit Eisley calls themselves "indie on a major" and after a succesful first release on Warner and another one soon to drop on August 14, it fits quite well. The sound the group crafted on 'Room Noises' continues again and gets molded even further on 'Combinations.' Their sound is almost undescribable, something only Brit alt-rockers Radiohead have been able to achieve with their dreamy and lush landscape-like sound with a flair for technology-infused beats. Eisley certainly has the melodic, lush sound down with a lyrical sense that would make Stevie Nicks and Fleetwood Mac very proud. In today's watered-down lyrical sense in music, it's good to see a group out there that can effectively deliver complex lyrics on to a unique music sound.
The album hits the mark immediately with the rolling and rollicking 'Many Funerals,' which starts with a haunting tambourine driven beginning which sort of takes you back to the times of Fleetwood Mac but then goes into the full band sound complete with keys which gives the song a biting edge. The vocals from sisters Sherri and Stacy Dupree and the edgy guitar play from fellow sister Chanutelle accentuates the sound even further. 'Invasion' definitely has a radio-friendly feel to the song with its unforgettable guitar and drum-driven melody. The lyrics to the song add an extra layer to 'Invasion' and help drive the song even further.
'Go Away' is a song about asking a guy to get away from her life and her just in general and the vocals from the sisters again speak to the listener's soul like as if the listener is the subject in the song. Such personal connection in a song is rare for a band to craft effectively for an entire song. Brother Weston and his drum skills are put to good use in the drum-driven 'I Could Be There For You.' Stacy's key skills give it a slightly ethereal feel to the song and at around the the 2-minute mark, the song gets full and lush and you can feel the power at that point of the band. 'Ten Cent Blues' is almost a misnomer given that it is nowhere close to blues. In fact it's very much sounding like Fleetwood Mac, who were known for the drum and electric guitar-driven melodies pounded by slightly wispy vocals and it's all right in front of the listener in 'Ten Cent Blues.' Probably a small tribute to the iconic group.
'A Sight to Behold' once again puts out Weston's pretty good drum skills but also puts out Chauntelle's ability to pick an electric guitar and she puts a haunting feel with the sharp and biting riffs on her electric, which creates a sound very simlar to Wings. Definitely something to behold! On most CDs, a title track is nothing more than filler but the title track for Eisley is definitely not filler. 'Combinations' is another Fleetwood-sounding like number and has a slight angelic feel with the harpsichord and harp in the background. The album ends with the dreamy 'If You're Wondering,' which starts with a little waterfall and then the xylophone and tambourine-driven beginning. The dreamsacpe built during the sub-4 minute song is a satisfying end to an album that might have used another song aor two to bring it closer to 40 minutes. The album is clocked just over 34 minutes.
Name: "Combinations"
Label: Reprise/Warner
Release Date: August 14, 2007
My rating: 4.2 out of 5
Alan Ho is the chief head of Musiqtone. You can reach him at alanho@musiqtone.com