Album Review

Oh No Oh My – People Problems

• 3rd Mar 2011

Texan rockers Oh No Oh My release their first “real” album in the UK next week. Following on from their self titled and self released debut, People Problems is a fine collection of songs with a complex interaction of instruments that backs the crisp, clear vocals very effectively.

Walking Into Me kicks the album off with a gentle acoustic guitar and vocal harmonies before the band kick in. The pace rises and the vocals get higher as the sound becomes ever more complex.

You Were Right has a more alt country feel to it, featuring a recurring guitar riff that punctuates the song, driving it ever forward in fine style

Again Again is similarly lively in tempo with the vocals clearer in a simple mix and a subtle horn part. To quote lead singer Daniel Hoxmeier, “It’s quite pretty for a song about reaching down someone’s throat”.

No Time For Talk starts slowly before meaty guitars alternate with keyboards as the music rises and falls, while I Don’t Know is another slow starter. This seems to be a technique that Oh No Oh My are fond of; the instruments kicking in one by one before the vocals. And it works very well here in this gentle, largely acoustic, number, which has a nice cello coda.

So I Took You is a pleasant sounding song with a twist: “So I took you with a knife and watched your eyes fight for life.” And the abrupt finish represents … death?

Brains and There Will Be Bones are similarly upbeat tracks written after a car crash. The dark undertones are there, though.

Not The One has a wistful air as it tells the story of a young woman’s fall from grace, while Should Not Have Come To This has a curious stop/ start feel based around guitars and keyboards.

Circles and Carousels slows things down, its gentle dream-like lyrics backed by delicate guitar picking. Coming in at around a minute and a half long, it almost feels like an interlude.

Summerdays immediately picks the pace up once more, as the lead guitar repeats a simple melody through the track. And there is a fine guitar solo in the middle too. Coming in at over six minutes, and with a lengthy instrumental outro, Summerdays closes the album in fine style.

Musically the quality is high throughout this album. All four members of the band play multiple instruments, which shows in the sometimes complex arrangements. And while the tone is generally upbeat there is a darker side to the music that seems to threaten to break through on occasions.

Oh No Oh My play six dates in Britain (London, Leeds and Glasgow) and Ireland (Galway, Dublin and Belfast) in March before heading home to the States. They will then be playing at SXSW, something of a home gig for them, followed by an extensive tour across the USA.

If you get the chance to see them while they are here, go along. I don’t think you will be disappointed.