Album/EP

Regionals - Teenage Seance (EP Review)

Walladmin

Heavy Metal Wordsmith

/10

May 14, 2020

7 min read

Regionals - Teenage Seance
Released: May 15th, 2020

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Have you ever wondered what it would sound like if you mixed the Australian accent twang of bands like Luca Brasi and Dear Seattle with the emo/melancholic instrumentation of bands like Minus The Bear and Tiny Moving Parts? I mean, who hasn't, right? If you have ever thought about how great this combo could sound, then check out Sydney Emo band Regionals' newest EP Teenage Seance.

Starting the EP is the ambient, minute and a half instrumental ‘Thieves Don't Steal From Empty Houses’. This little intro showcases the warm guitars and fuzzy instruments that will be heard throughout the EP. This leads into ‘Misery Guts’ which is a fantastic highlight on the EP early on. This song has excellent drumming from Lachlan Gray, and the vocals feel almost The National-esque, to begin with, but then we hear the fantastic Aussie inflection in Brett Islaub’s voice. Another excellent feature of this song is the technical guitar solo from and beautifully strummed outro.

It's been exciting to see so many Aussie bands releasing EPs that contain five or six absolute slappers of songs, and this EP is no different. Latest single ‘Steady Hands’ is a fantastic, emotional song. Part gorgeous harmonies, part pained screams it breaks down and crashes in parts and has a super catchy chorus that repeats "It's all just slipping away".

The EP isn't all melancholy and sad boy tunes; it features two equally as impressive, more upbeat songs; ‘Teenage Seance’ and ‘The More I Take, The Less I Have’. The title track is a beautiful song that seems to talk about lost love but in a warm, chilled-afternoon type of way. It says "Promise not to talk to you / as I summon ghosts from the other room / and I'm singing softly and out of tune / slowly wasting the afternoon". This song is titled perfectly and evokes feelings and memories of teenage love and spending time with your friends without adult responsibilities. The instruments in this song are fantastic, as are the gorgeous backing vocals and harmonies.

The other upbeat song on the EP starts with the signature ambient, fuzzy guitars but ends up sounding very Luca Brasi but with rad technical guitars weaving in and out. This song is still so good, but it is a bit different to the others on the EP. Initially, I wasn't as into it, just because I honestly like when these guys stick to their sound rather than sounding too much like anyone else. Comparisons to Luca Brasi are hard to escape with Islaub’s fantastic voice but more listens revealed all of the elements that made this song more Regionals than I first thought. Like the intro and wonderful bridge which are Regionals all over in their fuzziness and warmth. I hope that other listeners don't make the same mistake as I did and lose the song amongst the other similar-sounding bands, because they will be missing out.

This EP is so nostalgic; it reminds me of the incredible emo bands of the mid-2000s. It reminds me of heading to Kill The Music (Brissy kids will know) with the Macbeth wearers and listening to the incredible bands that used to sound like this. It reminds me of all of the emotions I felt as a teenager and in my early twenties and just how much good music helped navigate through that often incredibly sad time. At the same time, Regionals have also added their own flair, and it sounds new and fresh.

This EP is versatile, if you’re feeling down, chuck this on, and it'll help you through. If you're chilling on a gorgeous day like the ones we have been lucky enough to have here in Queensland lately, this is the perfect soundtrack. Listening to this EP makes me feel wistful and relaxed at the same time, it's pretty, it's emotional and best of all, its damn good. Make sure you add Teenage Seance to your regular listening playlist.