Album: Sleigh Bells – Jessica Rabbit

11th November via Torn Clean Records

4/10

In 2010 Alexis Krauss and Derek Miller stepped onto the scene with their debut album Treats. It was a colourful expedition into noise-pop. Krauss’s playful vocals floated over the distorted guitars and simple drum lines Miller had crafted. Treats was well received and proved that the formula the duo had crafted worked well.

A year later Sleigh Bells released their sophomore album Reign of Terror. Given the success of Treats it was no surprise that the band chose to stick with their established style. A few things were tweaked; complex drum lines and more confidence in Krauss’ heavier vocal delivery gave the project a more developed sound. The counter-side of this was a loss of the primalism that made Treats so appealing. Hits like ‘Riot Rhythm’ and ‘Infinity Guitars’ that basked in their own simplicity were replaced with more thoughtful tracks like the nostalgic ‘End of the Line’ or the sinister ‘Never Say Die’.

The trend was not unsurprising. Keeping the original sound that had served Sleigh Bells so well, whilst trying to branch into more experimental territories seemed logical. The problem is that the success of Treats was partly due to its rejection of the experimental rhythms or genre blending that begins to creep into their later albums

That’s where Jessica Rabbit enters. Named after the mysterious and enigmatic cartoon icon, this album is packed with sharp dynamic changes, gimmicky tempo shifts, clashing melodies and absurd lyrics. With many artists this sort of endeavour into experimentalism, whilst trying to develop old formulas, would be necessary. But this is Sleigh Bells. Mix these interesting features into Sleigh Bells signature sound and the result comes off less mysterious and enigmatic, and more embarrassingly cartoonish. Instead of an intriguing LP waiting to be unravelled, this feels like a plea from a pop band wanting to be taken seriously.

That’s not to say the whole project is a disappointment. On ‘Loyal For’ we catch a glimpse of what Jessica Rabbit could have been. Urgent cellos, echoing pianos and dark synth fill the space between Krauss’ cries in an atmospheric interlude. ‘Rule Number One’ manages to capture a little of Sleigh Bells old magic, but even this effect begins to wear thin quickly.

Loyal fans and dedicated NME readers may still enjoy the attempts at experimentation from this album. Particularly as it never deviates too far from the established Sleigh Bells formula. However, to the less attached listener Jessica Rabbit comes off as an underwhelming fourth album, devoid of anything particularly remarkable.