of Holiday Shores- “Columbus’d the Whim,”

The opening lines of Holiday Shore’s new album, “Columbus’d the Whim,” bring to mind a poor man’s Chris Martin with a tinge of King’s of Leon’s Caleb; soulful yet down to earth and bluesy. Talahasse natives Holiday Shores have created an album that is extremely listenable and jubilant. The first song, Reruns, is a standout track that starts inauspiciously then delves into clangy, quick drums, ukulele & tambourine and then trails off (as do many of the tracks) into slurred and seemingly heartfelt lyrics. From there, “Phones Don’t Fued” picks things up with a 50’s surfer style peppy beat and walking bass-line. The vocals sounds like they were recorded in a far-off, sun lit garage by the beach, while the drummer plugs away along with the discordant guitar licks. The lyrics are unintelligible at times, but the energy, pathos and overall creativity more than make up for this obscurity The creativity only spirals on from there, with “Dens” starting off with chords from an organ layered under another peppy drumbeat. The trippy, far off vocals combine with the instruments to evoke a sense of being on a trip to an outer space church. The album delves further into an update, bluesy beat with “Edge of our Lives,” a tune which you can’t help but bob your head and tap your feet to. Definitely an album that gets better with each listen, Columbus’d the Whim sounds like someone put Modest Mouse, the Pixies & Kings of Leon in a blender and then handed the results over to a bunch of surfer kids from North Florida. In a good way. This is the band’s debut LP and definitely deserves a good listen. You can check out more at their myspace page, http://www.myspace.com/holidayshoresmusic, featuring current tour dates as well. The album, “Columbus’d the Whim,” drops on August 4th on Twosyllable Records and currently have a new video out for their single, “Phones Don’t Feud,” which you can check out on the label website, http://twosyllablerecords.com. Review by: Vivien Treacy