The Cords/Baby Blue Vinyl

Description

Comprising sisters Eva and Grace Tedeschi, both started playing drums at an early age. Discovering that they preferred 80s and 90s indie music to their peers, they formed a band, just the two of them, with Grace on drums and Eva on guitar. The songs then started to take flight. With only one cassette and one flexi single released to date (both selling out in hours), Eva and Grace honed their craft by supporting the biggest names in Scottish pop. Their first gig was with The Vaselines, and since then they have played with Camera Obscura, Belle and Sebastian, BMX Bandits and others, while also sharing the stage with the new generation of indie pop stars: The Umbrellas, Chime School, and Lightheaded. They are praised by established stars and adored by their contemporaries. Invited for a recording session for Riley and Coe on 6 Music following the release of their early records, The Cords have just recorded their much-anticipated debut album, co-released by Skep Wax (in the UK and Europe) and Slumberland Records (in the USA). Like all great pop bands, The Cords have taken familiar ingredients and created something new. Older indie fans will hear echoes of The Shop Assistants, The Primitives, Tiger Trap, and Talulah Gosh, but they will also discover something else: a dreamy, nostalgic melodic power that takes the songs into darker, stranger realms. Younger pop fans won't care about these references: they will hear the sound of two young women in full effervescence: playing guitar and drums at full volume, grabbing analog instruments and hitting them hard in the service of instant and contagious pop tunes, without caring for a second about the digital world that wants to control everything. The Cords sound free: they remind us that pop music, when played well, is expressive, liberating, joyful, and deeply personal. The first single, "Fabulist," is a sweet and catchy pop song, so catchy and infectious that on first listen, one might miss its uncompromising denunciation of liars. The album then becomes a real roller coaster. "Just Don't Know (How To Be You)" raises the sound level, quickly giving way to "October," which propels it even higher. Many songs are short and sweet, but the album is full of surprises. "Yes It's True" arrives with great confidence, then softens the atmosphere with vocal harmonies worthy of Lush. The last track, "When You Said Goodbye," is a dreamy and tearful piece. Produced by Jonny Scott and Simon Liddel, the album respects the band's stripped-down DIY approach. There's a bit of bass guitar (played by Eva and Grace) and, from time to time, a keyboard emerges. But these elements simply do their job: the true stars of this record are Eva's sinuous guitar and silky vocals, and Grace's snappy and expressive drumming. This is the sound of two sisters in musical conversation, pushing each other to new heights, thrilled by the perfect pop songs they have composed.