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Album Reviews
Album Review: The Young Republic – Balletesque (End Of The Road)
By CMU Editorial | Published on Friday 9 October 2009
‘Balletesque’, folksy Tennessee-based sextet The Young Republic’s sophomore release – always a difficult one – is a great big unification of contemporary pseudo-blues-and-folk influences, from the likes of The Raconteurs and The White Stripes. Their sound is, therefore, unmistakably and undeniably American. Opening with the almost Cursive-esque ‘The Alchemist’, ‘Balletesque’ infuses bluesy guitar-pop with a range of diverse instruments, from brass to Eastern-European string sounds; I’m not a huge fan of frontman Julian Saporiti’s voice – it’s a little abrasive, but at the same time, it’s not incredibly interesting, particularly for the kind of music that the band are playing, which is, in its own right, exciting and new, despite the aforementioned influences. Regardless, ‘Balletesque’ is a fine album – and a worthy follow up to the relatively well-received ’12 Tales From Winter City’. “Grower” albums are often dismissed before they’re given a chance to, well, grow – and ‘Balletesque’ is unfortunately one of those albums. Give it a chance, though – because that’s when it’ll endear you. TW
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