6 Day Riot – On This Island

 

6 Day Riot do not sound like the kind of clan that would partake on such a lengthy riotous off-the-chain bender as their moniker suggests. On the contrary On This Island suggests a musical sensibility of a band with a much more heedful approach; damage to your hearing is most assuredly not on the cards, what may cause you a spoil is their defiant, whimsical arrangements for good or for bad.

Luring the listener in with gentle choral harmonies, Take Me, plays out like a fighter in close quarters using one arm to punch and letting the other arm hide waiting to land a surprise blow with the most rousing chorus the band can muster, talk about punch-the-air, it’s a knock-out in round one. Tamara Schlesinger’s plucky vocals and way with a word are pleasant and endearing especially on Raise Your Head and Run Away, however over the course of the record the band prove all too nippy and at points, particularly Out To Sea and All I Need, are insufferably exuberant.