From wiki:-
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, also sometimes known as Rolling Blackouts C.F., is an Australian indie rock band. It was formed in Melbourne in 2013 by singer-guitarists Fran Keaney, Tom Russo & Joe White. The band’s five members are Keaney, his cousin Joe White, Tom Russo, his brother Joe Russo (bass guitar), and Marcel Tussie (drums). Their debut EP, Talk Tight, was released in 2016 on Ivy League Records. It was followed by their second EP, the French Press, which was mixed by Doug Boehm and released in 2017 on Sub Pop Records. Their debut full-length album, Hope Downs, was released on 15 June 2018 on Sub Pop.
It was around the time of the debut album that I first came across them, thanks to a profile in the Guardian newspaper which made reference to them ‘breathing excitement back into a too often uninspiring indie scene’. Comparisons were made to The Go-Betweens which I took to be just lazy journalism until I went scouting around t’internet and found myself understanding where the thought had come from (Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever don’t rely on one lead vocalist) albeit I thought their material was a bit too one-paced for it to be totally valid.
I also found there was more than a touch of 80s R.E.M. about them in terms of the tunes, albeit the production was clearer and crisper and then there was the NYC influences of the likes of Television and early Strokes. In short, there was much to appreciate, albeit none of it seemed to be life-changing.
It was an album which I put on the longlist for Xmas, albeit it was still six months off.
I’ve now been listening to it for a few days and regretting my decision to wait as an early purchase would have made me want to go catch them live, albeit as it turns out they had already been to Glasgow in advance of the release of the album – but there was a later show in September at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto which actually coincided with a trip over there for some golf and baseball but I wasn’t paying attention. I’m kicking myself very very hard right now.
If, buts and maybes…..I don’t have too many of them these days, but missing that show is one of them.
mp3 : Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Exclusive Grave
mp3 : Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Talking Straight
The rest of the album is just as good.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 