Bevel
treads familiar ground on their
Jagjaguwar
EP release,
Down the Puppet String, Marionettes
. The record starts out with
"Punch & Judy Reconnaissance,"
a song that musically sounds a lot like the
Smog
classic,
Doctor Came at Dawn
, with delicate acoustic instruments layering on top of one another while light vocals are spoken/sung against the music -- a great place to start. The instruments sound like they are locked up in a reverb chamber throughout the short record. The use of strings and big drums, as in
"Steeple Drums,"
pushes
to an interesting, moody place, helping lift the weak vocals to pleasant atmospherics. Many of the tracks end with a pause, then launch into interesting second parts that
just let fade, making you wish that the band had gone in that direction. This is background music that hints at something indie
folk
-ish, the likes of
Souled American
or
Palace
. Unfortunately, nothing really takes over and grabs you on
, leaving the EP to be just nice. ~ Francis Arres