Britain's The Electric Revival has been making its name across the pond by playing anywhere and everywhere within its homeland; churches, schools, pubs, you name it. With the band's recent Greenbelt Festival appearance and the release of its first CD with Last Unicorn, Learning to Drown, TER is poised to impress itself further throughout Europe, and in America as well.
It is apparent upon first listen that TER owes a great deal musically Fans of Boy in particular should latch onto The Electric Revival's anthemic power pop easily. The order of the day here is comprised of big drums, driving bass, rousing vocals, and lots of overdriven, delayed guitar hooks.
Despite an album title which might, upon first consideration, seem sullen, the declarations of simple faith, love, trust, and renewal contained on Learning to Drown fill its ten songs with a healthy dose of positivity. Apparently, drowning is something to be excited about.
Cuts such as "Breaking the Chains" and the band's first single, "Changing Everything," were born for arena rock glory. One can easily imagine hundreds of packed, sweaty concert-goers shouting "Light My Way"'s refrain, "Come on, show me, light my way," in joyous unison.
One can't help but make the comparison to early U2 when listening to this band. The biggest difference, however, is that we have here a band that has definitely found what it's looking for.
