Sweet Benfica – ‘Earthquake Lights’
When self-penned slacker, Lo-fi duo Sweet Benfica released their debut E.P. ‘The Sliding Stones of Death Valley’ last year, it came as a shock to most who gave the E.P. the time of day, that these seven songs; which carried you on a tour of Stefan’s (Singer/Guitarist, song writer and dominant creative figure of ‘Sweet Benfica’) ever hopefulness and wishful thinking, had not been written and listened to before. Maybe it was the subtle forgery or the instant connection created by Stephan’s lyrical prowess within the music, but from the first listen I had the impression that these songs had existed within my music collection for years. It was as if, as the lead track of the E.P. suggests, ‘It Came From Outta Space’….whatever it was, it was definitely stirring to say the least. So you can imagine my intrigue and excitement when I discovered that the Welsh brother’s, within a short six months had written and recorded their debut album in Stephan’s shed located in the small town of Neath in South Wales on an eight track recorder. A simple formula that clearly works well for the duo….why change a good thing?
Album opener, Ramones-esque ‘The Girl Makes Me Go Wild’ is an instant crowd pleaser and as a band that jumps between alt folk and garage rock this track really highlights the latter. Stephan and Calum effortlessly thrash there instruments to within an inch of their life. Calum’s drumming and percussion, simple but passionate definitely adds to the Sweet Benfica sound. And I’m sure as much as the brother’s will look down their noses at this comparison there is definitely an air of Jack and Meg White about them. Within an instant you have that feeling of familiarity, as if you’ve just dug out an old gem from your record collection. As previously mentioned, as well as the album containing great garage rock tunes; ‘The Girl Makes Me Go Wild’, ‘Back This Way’ and my personal favourite, title track ‘Earthquake Lights’ to name a few, the album also has it’s sweet, dreamy, acoustic moments. It’s these songs that I feel really show off Stephan’s talents as a lyricist. With themes of young lust, nostalgia and escaping reality they are very easy to relate to adding to the feeling of familiarity that these songs so brilliantly create. I also love the more humorous moments of the album, most notably ‘Weird Beard’. As a beard-wearer myself, listening to this great sing along, with lines such as “You tried to dress me like a hipster, but my money was spent on beer and rent, now all I’ve got left is my beard” I found myself having a little chuckle.
Watch ‘The Sliding Stones Of Death Valley’
I feel Sweet Benfica have really hit the nail on the head with ‘Earthquake Lights’. I was left hankering for more with a real wanting for the duo to achieve the dreams of escape that they express so much within their music. Hopefully this is just the start for the duo with a slot at the renowned Green Man festival and promise of more live dates, I for one will definitely make the effort to see them. I would even feel comfortable enough to be at the front singing along. This is not an album to be wasted and forgotten about. It would be great to see the songs from the album, and the E.P. that preceded it adapted in a live scenario. If the bands performance is anything like their song writing then we are in for an interesting and passionate show. 7.8/10
Daniel Copelston