BANDS:

Punk & Ska
80's New Wave/
Post-Punk/
College Bands
90's & Beyond
Virginia, North
Carolina, & DC

Bugs Eat Books: Ghosts of Leaves
[HHBTM]

This is not insect music, which is either tiny sounds and details, or perfectly swerving multitudes of instruments on a single mission. Twinkling sounds aside, the first full-length release from Bugs Eat Books is neither spare enough to conjure a delicate clicking mantis, nor mindless enough to conjure the drone of a hive. Think instead of fireflies at play little sparkly lights you would be pleased to find in your yard. Bugs Eat Books have created a distinctive sound on this release, a clever mix of strong melodies and occasional electronic flourishes, which only needs a little vocal quality to pull this band out of the twilight.

For Ghosts of Leaves, Jon Croxton leads the band on drums and vocals. His young, seemingly untrained voice is the accoutrement to solid, melodic guitar and bass. The great bass is slightly reminiscent of Death Cab for Cutie (Catch a Rise is nearly the best track on the record for the bass alone). San Marosa has light electronic bleeps: a clever touch on a great track with poor vocals. Where I Fell burns sweet and ends with a nice epic fadeout, but the vocals are flat and an octave lower than they ought to be. Cello and slide guitar effects make Tricks of the Tracks the most mature cut of the album, and Headful of Rocks exemplifies the sharp, burgeoning sound that flows through the release.

Bugs Eat Books are not a new species of music, but they spawned an album balanced between a few main genres. Ghosts of Leaves would benefit from a vocal maturity equal to the already-developed music styling. Though the voices can be squawkish and discordant, the instrumentation is some of the best Ive heard recently. Great guitar work, a variety of beautiful melodies, and generally lighthearted delivery make this first full-length release a promising beginning from a firefly band.

[Note: According to the liner notes, BEB is Jimmy, Jon, Rob, and Robbie. According to the press, BEB is composed of Jimmy, Jon, Rob, and Ian. Hence, I basically avoided names when the press mentions that band members have occasionally been lost to dropsy, incarceration andwormholes, Ill just concentrate on their sound.]

This album can be purchased at HHBTM Records

Bugs Eat Books Official Website

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