Young Leaves, The
Life Underneath
The Young Leaves, a trio from Massachusetts, get the job well done by sounding as if they really should have been playing alongside bands such as Dinosaur Jr., Buffalo Tom and Jawbreaker, as well as all of the other indie rock bands that were popular way back in the mid-to-late 1980s. I liked a lot of that stuff back then but havent listened to many of the bands in a few years, so hearing Life Underneath is a really enjoyable experience. The one "modern" band that comes to mind when playing this is Dan Webb and the Spiders, and on looking at the Young Leaves Facebook page its no surprise to see these two bands playing together in the near future. The songs have hooks aplenty, with the guitars based around that slightly fuzzed sound of yesteryear (Im no guitar tech, so the myriad of guitar pedals that could possibly have been used here are beyond me) that has a warming quality to it-almost like someone wrapping their arms around you and immediately creating a glow inside that heats your body from the inside. Vocally, its really got a deep kind of J Mascis quality going on-again, one of the key elements that is able to warm the cockles of your heart when listening to this.