Daniel ChanReview: Bring Back the Vibe by The Pinholes
“Yeah, that rock and roll, it seems like it’s faded away sometimes, but it will never die. And there’s nothing you can do about it.” – Alex Turner, front man of British rock group Arctic Monkeys at the recent Brit Awards.
As passionately pointed out by Turner, it’s hard for the genre to just roll over. In fact, rock and roll is very much alive on our sunny little island, thanks to the release of the highly anticipated album Bring Back the Vibe by rock and roll heroes The Pinholes.
Following the success of their 4-track EP Youth Of Gold, Bring Back the Vibe consists of 11 tracks that will definitely get you up on your feet.
The Pinholes, comprising Famie Suliman, Hailrul ‘DD’ Hanafiah, and Wando Diao, has been in the local music scene for 10 years and it took them surprisingly long to release a full-length album – 8 years to be exact.
According to an interview with Juice Magazine, the album had been in the making since 2006 and was recorded a whopping 4 times before perfection.
The entire album kicks off with Famie’s familiar croaky voice accompanied by a flamenco-sounding guitar riff that could possibly make the cut on the soundtrack of a Quentin Tarantino fight scene. “You’ll Never Gonna Take My Life” takes listeners back to the 1960s, with 4-part vocal harmonies and twangy guitar riffs.
The band’s influences include The Quests, The Lovehunters and Sweet Charity, whose styles resonate in all of their tracks. Despite having instrumental similarities with these bands, The Pinholes also exudes a distinct Singaporean flavor, which can be heard in their heavy use of Singlish in the lyrics.
“Money”, the 4th track of the album is another dance-able track with nice surf-pop tunes that would get audiences boogieing to the beat. Although slightly repetitive, the song builds up to an atmospheric guitar solo, leaving listeners with a feel-good sensation.
Just like many songs off the album, Famie’s vocals sound like he’s singing with a loud hailer, probably to emulate a retro vibe. One of the 2 slower paced tracks on the album “Get Well Soon” shows that The Pinholes aren’t just all jive. An emotional and solemn side is shown through layers of soft harmonized vocals and even a string section to accompany Famie’s vocals, painting a picture of nostalgia in sepia tones.
Even the album art screams a Singaporean aura, with 2 men in tight pants looking like they belong to the 1960s with a Vespa complementing their pompadour hairstyles.
8 years is a long time, but it definitely paid off. Despite some production inadequacies in the sound quality, the album proves to be a true blue rock and roll record. As Tuner points out, rock and roll never dies.
Rating: 4/5
Album Details:
Artiste: The Pinholes
Album: Bring Back The Vibe
Language: English
Genre: Rock & Roll
Record Label: Independent
Release Date: February 28 2014
Tracklist:
1.You’ll Never Gonna Take My Life 02:48
2. Shake N Bake 02:48
3. Bring Back The Vibe 02:07
4. Money 02:46
5. Ali Malarkey 02:53
6. How Much Is Too Much? 02:54
7. All Out 03:02
8. Triumph Le Spectrum 03:50
9. Get Well Soon 03:24
10. Disturbing The Peace 03:29
11. I Can’t Wait 03:17