French Kiss Records owes me a new set of speakers damnit! In fact, they owe me a lot of things.Little did I know that when I went to pop this little baby into my player, the explosive low end, brash drum beatings and repeatedly loud playings would eventually lead to blown out speakers, broken windows and noise complaints from neighbors. No one warned me of its addictive qualities. At one point, I think it was last Tuesday, my wife threatened to leave me if I didn't "turn that shit down". I had to cut her loose. It wasn't easy though. You see, I've been playing 'Son of the Tiger' non-stop for two weeks straight at max volume. From the moment I roll of out of bed to the moment I pass out on the cold bathroom tile surrounded by empty beer bottles and cigarette butts, I live for The Big Sleep.This Brooklyn trio's debut is essentially beauty and beast rolled into one. It is largely instrumental at times, going for great lengths before a single phrase is uttered into the microphone. Beefy basslines and propulsive drums muscle through blissed out, swirling textures ala My Bloody Valentine or Yo La Tengo. At certain points, 'Son' bottoms out, carving vast canyons of drone and blurry ambience. The opener, Brown Beauty keeps its cards close to the cuff, bursting out of the gate with a fuzzy bassline and pounding beat. Not to be outdone by a droning wall of sound, it slowly builds and then spills out into the second song, Murder. Here, we are introduced for the first time to the captivating and earnest vocal stylings of Sonya Balchandani. Equally tender and brassy, Sonya does her best to weigh in with a voice as light as air.After the final visceral notes blasted on Murder, 'Son of the Tiger' rolls over to expose its soft underbelly with the next few tunes meandering into cleaner, chunky, bass driven numbers, shoegaze and the more introspective sounds of SKB and Menemy. The remainder of the album pulls nicely between bombast and bliss.While, their press release touts them as My Bloody Valentine meets Led Zeppelin, I don't neccessarily hear the Zep. Perhaps they're referring to the "largeness" of their sound or maybe the way that something complex sounding can sometimes seem effortless. In my opinion, "Son of the Tiger" comes off as an exercise in restraint. Bold in its simplicity. But don't take my word for it, judge for yourself. After all, it's pretty clear that these kids don't **** around and neither should you. Go get this one and you can thank me later.
Original Review 
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Metallik French Kiss-Potion13 - heavy metal hard rock from Montreal
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The Big Sleep - Son of the Tiger (French Kiss Records)
