The Outline’s Los Angeles roots shine through their new single “Sloppy Drunk”, a combination of shrieking post-hardcore and Killers-esque synth-rock that brings to mind hazy parties full of down-on-their-luck Hollywood nobodies.
The most important thing about “Sloppy Drunk” is that, unlike the character it is named for, it doesn’t outstay its welcome. The Outline breeze in on an brightly abrasive jangle of chords, and with little in the way of preliminaries they work their way through a few verses and choruses and a Vegas-pomp middle-eight in well under three minutes.
Swift, purposeful and faintly seedy, The Outline sweep through your ears like an alcoholic gatecrasher raiding the fridge at a party. “I’m a sloppy drunk / but it’s worse when I’m sober” screeches Graham Fink in his opening lines, but he’s not talking about himself or his band. “Sloppy Drunk” is far from shambolic; in fact, it’s an exercise in restraint and precision. From the crystalline poise of the introspective middle-eight to the frantic chords and buzzy synths of the outro, everything is placed carefully with an eye for detail.
“Sloppy Drunk” shows that The Outline can pen a decent tune and speak with their own distinctive voice – its mix of brisk aggro and aloof coolness has the potential to become a dancefloor favourite at your local indie disco. In the meantime, we’ll have to wait for forthcoming album You Smash It, We’ll Build Around It to see if The Outline have got more than one firecracker in their pocket - but this is a very promising start.
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Posted in Music reviews |
Tags: experimental, indie, post-hardcore, rock, Sloppy Drunk, The Outline
