Review: Alphabet Bands
Webzine Alphabet Bands reviews Thugs and China Dolls and gets all gushy on us:
Dukes’ blend of wry, observational humour and poetry reminds us in part of John Grant and his sublime album, The Queen of Denmark. But while Grant’s focus was more internal, more autobiographical, Dukes’ head is up and he is looking out, his attention on the “the weirdness, the anomalies, the resistance” of the American suburbs. These eccentricities may be ripe for lampooning but Dukes treats his subjects with affection; jauntily bouncing along in celebration or shuffling, dejected, as appropriate.
And then, lo and behold, a week later they posted our “Meet You at the Bus” video, and gushed again:
We should have spent a little more time talking about just how eloquent a lyricist Dukes is. We certainly should have mentioned how his observations on the foibles of suburban life, set to a combination of banjo, horns, pianos and poetic harmonies are just so damn endearing.
This post is tagged: Alphabet Bands