BANDS:

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

Peluka: Take Take Take
[self-released]

I sometimes find it odd that bands are so often lauded for being original.  Original, if it means the opposite of boring and clichd is clearly a good thing and maybe that is really what people mean when they call a band or an album originalthey mean exciting.  However, originality is no absolute virtue.  Take, for example, Metal Machine Music, Lou Reeds infamous, yet strikingly original if also unlistenable album.  Clearly no one would say, Well, it sounds like crap but at least it is original.  If someone did say such a thing, they would be rightly dismissed as insane and possibly institutionalized. 

Pelukas recent album Take, Take, Take lacks novelty in the pet rock sense, but most people would say this is a virtue rather than a fault.  This band would be at home in a neighborhood populated by Radiohead, Galaxie 500, and other suitably epic, yet subdued, bands.  Part of Pelukas Galaxie 500 flavor may only be a result of the fact that this record is self-released and as such is probably not the best possible recording of the band.  Listening to their record, I cant help but get that familiar sense that I have heard their music before or at least something like it.  This may be an effect that all good music has, the ability to tap into universal human sensations and emotions creating a familiar feeling.  Dj vu makes a whole lot of sense if things really do happen over and over again. 

Any good band should be more than the sum of all of their polyphonous influences.  Peluka hides their influences by having a strong vision of their own.  They are not just writing their own songs in the style of another band, as so many do.  Nobody wants to here how Peluka would write a Radiohead song, and fortunately, this is not what Peluka does.  Instead, they refashion something exciting (and yes, original) out of their various influences.  With soaring Radiohead-esque vocals and subdued Galaxie 500 guitars, Peluka also adds the melodic and lyrical knowledge of a Built to Spill or even of a less amplified Hum.  The result speaks for itself and if there is any musical justice, Peluka will only progress from this very promising start.   

This album can be purchased at Amazon

Peluka Official Website

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