Sometimes you need a band that knows exactly what it is that they’re doing and what they are. Even if their aims are humble, it’s good that they’re upfront about them, not trying to reinvent the wheel. That’s the case with Faith & Spirit, as they themselves concede that “[i]‘ts not about creating a new music style, but to pay tribute to the artists who made us want to make music.” Their new EP, Glorious Days makes this point clear, as it highlights the influences in their work, although without coming off as derivative as you’d otherwise expect.
The EP does have some low points, like “Everybody Gets it Wrong,” which sounds like an Oasis cover. Granted, Faith & Spirit name the Britpop band as an influence but… was this really necessary? I mean, it really does sound like something taken straight from 1997’s Be Here Now, it’s just that I sincerely don’t know what would make anyone think that’s a good thing.
Aside from the painful Gallagher tribute, the album is packed with some pretty solid rock with a bluesy twang (for the latter, pay special attention to closing track “Down the Road”). It’s quite reminiscent of The Black Keys, sometimes a bit too much, but it works well as a tribute to the band’s influences. The title track, “Glorious Days,” is just a terrific song, and the way in which Vivien Thielen‘s masculine voice intertwine with backing female vocals adds a great depth to what would have otherwise been a run of the mill track. It it this kind of variation, of going a bit outside the rules, that really makes this EP memorable.
Let me be clear here. Glorious Days may not be an album you’ll be talking about years from now; sometimes, however, an album doesn’t need that. Plus, this is a band created by some of the band members simply for their sound engineering studies a couple of years ago. Hell, if my university projects were half as successful as this one, I’d be the goddamn dean.