(Photo Credit - Charlie Lowe)
Advance Review - Beach Slang: The Deadbeat Bang of Heartbreak City
The Deadbeat Bang of Heartbreak City is an album that oozes glitz and driving melodies. Beach Slang exhibit a sound that's familiar and altogether new on this one. As that album progresses, there are hints of familiar classic hard rock tones. Especially in the rhythm of tracks such as "Tommy in the 80s", a sweet homage to classic alt hits from the decade. The album features special guest bassist Tommy Stinson, of The Replacements fame. The album can temper down too, with ballads like "Nobody Say Nothing", an acoustic track featuring some gorgeous implementation of strings throughout.
Beach Slang set themselves apart vocally as well. Frontman James Alex has a raspy tinge to it, it's unlike anything out there right now. The album shows incredible versatility as Beach Slang show they can play it upbeat with just about anyone on tracks like "Stiff". They can also mellow it out with tracks like "Nowhere Bus", which immediately drew comps to bands of the past like The Replacements. When they play up, Beach Slang's sound on The Deadbeat Bang of Heartbreak City is immensely catchy and even more just begs to be danced to. We've included their tour dates for 2020 below so that you can do just that when you catch them live.
Rating - 4/5
Beach Slang 2020 Tour Dates 3/13: Nashville, TN @ The High Watt 3/14: Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade (Purgatory Stage) 3/15: New Orleans, LA @ Santos 3/17: Dallas, TX @ House of Blues - Cambridge Room 3/23: Houston, TX @ House of Blues - Bronze Peacock Room 3/25: Phoenix, AZ @ The Rebel Lounge 3/26: Los Angeles, CA @ Bootleg 3/27: Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room 3/28: San Diego, CA @ Casbah 3/29: Berkeley, CA @ Cornerstone 3/30: San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill 4/1: Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios 4/2: Seattle, WA @ Columbia City Theater 4/3: Boise, ID @ The Olympic 4/5: Salt Lake City, ID @ Urban Lounge 4/6: Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge 4/7: Omaha, NE @ Slow Down 4/8: Fargo, ND @ The Hall FBC 4/9: Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry 4/10: Chicago, IL @ Cobra Lounge 4/11: Columbus, OH @ Big Room Bar 4/12: Cleveland, OH @ Mahall’s 4/13: Pittsburgh, PA @ Thunderbird Music Hall 4/16: Brooklyn, NY @ Knitting Factory 4/17: Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall 4/18: Ottawa, ON @ The 27 Club 4/19: Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus 4/20: Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern 4/22: Washington, DC @ Union Stage