Album Review

Straight Lines – Persistence In This Game

• 17th Feb 2010

There is no irony in the title of Straight Lines’ album, ‘Persistent in This Game’. From the ashes of Tom and Dane’s former band, SaidMike, rose Straight Lines and this unforgettable debut – 12 sensational tracks produced and recorded in Dane’s brother’s garage. Despite a total lack of funds and an incomplete line-up, the dedicated duo emerged from the garage a four-piece with an impressively polished repertoire.

Opening track (and first single to be taken from the album) ‘Versus the Allegiance’, insists that you sit up and take notice. And it doesn’t stop there – the band’s omnipresent, urgent enthusiasm demands your attention from start to finish.

Tom’s irresistibly melodic, incredibly distinctive vocals blend with catchy pop choruses, fast-paced rock riffs and a punk-rock aggression, to create an entirely unique musical style which renders this band impossible to label. Confident experimentation with a wide variety of influences including At The Drive-In , The Mystery Jets and Incubus, lead to an album bursting with diversity. From thought-provoking ballad ‘All my friends have joined the army” to belligerent pop-punk anthem “Perfect Mistakes,” to the (surprisingly, given its title) jaunty, uplifting final track “Set me on fire and feed me to the wolves”, Straight Lines refuse to commit to any single genre.

Lyrics are effortlessly delivered at an exhausting rate in faster tracks such as ‘A Place to Stay’ and ‘To be Honest’, but listen closely – there are poignant social commentaries to be heard in their mature, honest song-writing. Jarring and distressing is ‘The Ballad of Peter Devine,’ exemplifying this band’s ability to captivate and manipulate their audience’s emotions.

Poised to be one of the most memorable albums of 2010, and one of the strongest debuts recorded to date, ‘Persistent in This Game’ will sit Straight Lines comfortably among the ranks of fellow Welsh successes Kids in Glass Houses and the Blackout.