Have you ever wanted a mixture of Britpop, Grunge and Razorlight? Not really, no. But the idea sounds good doesn’t it? Err, not really. Sorry. Well, these Tribes lads are a trendy Camden band who cite Nirvana, Pixies, Pavement and REM as their influences. But Electric Banana writers would bet all our whole life savings that Blur and Suede are hiding in the boy’s CD collections somewhere! The result is not unlike Razorlight.
Tribes’ debut album Baby does feature that soft melodic/loud shouty method of song-writing that was (probably) invented by the Pixies’ Black Francis back in 1988. This was then used by that merry Kurt Cobain bloke in 1991. However, apart from that, the so-called Grunge influence isn’t that noticeable at all. Most of the album – like Whenever and When My Day Comes - skips forward six years (from 1988) for it’s influences with big Britpop choruses from 1994, but at times risks sounding like they have leaped forward thirteen-or-so years into the uncool Johnny Borrell-esque danger zone. Viva Brother anyone?
Other tunes like Corner Of An English Field is a touching tribute to Charlie Haddon of Ou Est Le Swimming Pool (as Tribes’ singer Johnny Lloyd was a pal of his) with a slow-ish Bowie or Blur tune with an effects pedal, while Sappho is jolly good guitar-pop song that is (again) like Blur and Suede swiped from 1994 that will make you convinced that the song is a cover. It isn’t. But don’t even get us started on Alone or With Friends sounding a bit too much like Blur’s Tender with a slight Grunge-y slant. The influences seem to blur into one big Britpop-inspired collection of indie-pop songs.
Sadly, you will end up playing a fun little game of “Spot the Influence” rather than giving the Tribes the credit they deserve for creating this fun-ish debut. Lets just hope Damon Albarn doesn’t notice Baby though. He is probably the real father.
Words by Andy Parker
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