Album Review: Eagle and Talon - Thracian

EAGLE AND TALON
THRACIAN
(Self-released)
www.eagleandtalon.com

When did lo-fi change from technical jargon into a genre? Throw a slightly sloppy drum and occasional Casio beats under imperfect vocals, and the term can be used to describe a band. Eagle and Talon manage to sneak under the crowded "lo-fi" umbrella on their new release, Thracian, and they manage to pull it off successfully.

What makes this album endearing is that it's the product of a duo who aren't amazing musicians but also aren't exactly trying to hide that fact. For instance, Kim Talon may not be the best singer in the world, but she hides it by singing in an interesting way as opposed to masking it behind slick production techniques. Every drum hit from Alice (also with the last name Talon) doesn't strike with the exact same force, and a few of the hits on the album's first track, "Hotcaught," sound slightly off the tempo. This seems like it could be annoying, but it actually ends up being quite refreshing and results in a more natural feel.

It's little things like this that make a band sound real. These days bands and labels sometimes spend lots of time and/or money to achieve a "lo-fi" effect (think of The Strokes first album or Wavves), but it never quite captures that charm that a true lo-fi band like Eagle and Talon simply have naturally.