On Shoulders Of Giants – Come Crashing
Hailing from Israel, Idan Epshtein and Avital Tamir formed On Shoulders Of Giants in 2006 with the intention of creating an experimental acoustic pop group. Three years down the line they are still together and making similar noises but have now recruited a new singer. Pleasingly, despite their name being similar to a dodgy Oasis album, they have crafted a very eclectic and interesting record.
Although her bandmates push and pull on the experimental front, undoubtedly Katie Danielson is the star turn even when she’s singing prettily on lighter material such as ‘Box Of Ivory’ and ‘Symphony Of Trees’. On a more aggressive scale, ‘By Then…’ switches from innocuous verses to a stunning chorus led by Danielson’s surging vocal melody, whereas ‘Liquid Diet’ rumbles along frenetic rhythms and more of Danielson’s inspired ululations to create arguably the key moment when the trio sound most together.
Frustratingly, an inconsistent second half partly undoes the good work of the first. For instance, ‘Star Quality’ incongruously and unwisely switches between a jazz club style and some laboured alternative rock. At least ‘Remember To Breathe’ offers the dreaminess and a sense of space that the title suggests.
The overall effect is a little similar to Evanescence in that the group seem to rely on a female singer’s talents and when she doesn’t feature so much the songs are less memorable. Nevertheless there’s no harm in being labelled with the “female-fronted band” tag so long as it doesn’t cause frictions within the band.
For more from Jon, please visit Leonards Lair