The four-man band known as Babbling April describe their music making style as a DIY affair. Fusing 90s styled alternative rock, pop with shoe-gaze sensibilities, the band made up of lead vocalists Dave New, Vivi Machi and rhythm section players Ben Medina, Ben Melrod deliver something beautiful with their own rendition of Joan Jett's classic tune "Bad Reputation" single. While this version definitely took a lot of liberties with the arrangement and changes the chords, tempo, melody, and lyrics, the band still evokes the same spirit of the original to an extent. The lead duo trade vocal duties on the record, Vivi delivers her part with a soft, angelic tone over the multi-layered backdrop as Dave softly croons in the background adding some sort of psychedelic ambiance to the song.
Recorded and mixed in Dave and Vivi’s basement, the band’s newest EP, Holy Gold, is a testament to the joy Babbling April imbue their music with. Acoustic-meets- shoegaze guitar pop ambiance echoes across each track as fevered bass lines and distinct vocal textures weave through. The compositions tend to change tempo and morph beneath the ear-wormy melodies, conjuring up the work of Yo La Tengo, Built to Spill and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, amongst a wealth of alternative bands of the ’90’s. “The songs are often bittersweet snapshots of the ephemeral nature of life” Dave reflects. “Friends grow apart, places are never the same, but a few perfect memories will always remain.”
"Reputation" is the single off of Babbling April's new EP, "Holy Gold," to be released digitally and on vinyl 3 March 2018.
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