4 March 2013

Unearthed Reviews: The Brass Knuckle Brass Band. Four stars

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How long can I keep digging through the Unearthed Review backlog before I break down? Let’s find out!

I pulled up the list and scrolled down to see which name came after Slagrugrhyme’s and was delighted to spot The Brass Knuckle Brass Band.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I really like the Brass Knuckle Brass Band. I like the people in the Brass Knuckle Brass Band. I like that the Brass Knuckle Brass Band often agree to play at my poetry slam for what little money we can give them. I like that their sousaphone player often attends the rather awesome trivia nights I run at the Phoenix.

DISCLOSURE DISCLOSURE: Yes I was self promoting then.

The Brass Knuckle Brass Band are magnificent live. They sound rich and smooth, and their presence fills a venue with energy. I cannot recommend seeing them live enough, which is why I was a little disappointed with the songs they have up on the Unearthed site. These recordings do not do the band justice. Admittedly I am listening to them through the really quite awful speakers on my Macbook Air. Wait… I’ll go get some headphones.

Alright, that was much better. It still falls very short of the live experience, but I probably shouldn’t be surprised that a large brass band doesn’t compress well into a recording, but still these seem a little flat. It’s not all bad news though. The full effect of the BKBB’s sound may be lost but their music is still sharp and fun, and these tracks to manage to capture that. ‘Now’s the Time’ is a personal favourite, but make sure you check out ‘Just Gotta Know’ to hear Courtney Stark’s vocals… just make sure you use a nice pair of headphones.

Four stars.

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Mattenagger said :

Can I request you review Mandala (Sydney)? Though they’re kind of based between Canberra and Sydney now I can assure you that the tunes they have on Unearthed were all composed in Canberra by 4 out of 5 Canberrans.

Sorry, maybe one day. They’re not listed as an ACT band on the website which is how I search for acts. They may play here, but I’m going to focus on bands that identify as ACT based first and foremost.

Can I request you review Mandala (Sydney)? Though they’re kind of based between Canberra and Sydney now I can assure you that the tunes they have on Unearthed were all composed in Canberra by 4 out of 5 Canberrans.

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