Kissing Cousins – S/T
Kissing Cousins – S/T / 2005 Velvet Blue / 4 Tracks / http://www.velvetbluemusic.com / Reviewed 04 March 2006

The sly sound of “Sillhouettes” mixes well with the light instrumentation that individuals are confronted with at the onset of this self-titled EP. In a sense, Kissing Cousins sound like “Horses”-era Patti Smith, mixed with a good serving of the Velvet Underground (when they still had Nico). It is during “Phone Call” that Kissing Cousins really get into something that more closely relates itself to punk music. However, this is the type of punk music that individuals can put “OK Computer”-era Radiohead into if they really tried to; this is much more of an influential instead of a sound type of thing.

Tracks on this EP are not necessarily about cultivating a specific sound for all of the radio and video outlets, but really to come up with a brand of music that Kissing Cousins can be proud of. The sattering of tracks on this EP really allow the band to feel proud, as they continue a specific thread while still probing interesting new ground and having something to snare listeners with. Finishing off the disc with “White Room”, Kissing Cousins show that there is still room to create a retro, early seventies sound – all the White Stripes and Strokes have not poisoned the well completely yet.

There are links in Kissing Cousins’ music that tie the general sound of the act to differing genres of music in the seventies, eighties and nineties but at all times the band makes it on their own terms. There are only four tracks on this CD, but individuals that give the CD a few listens will be amazed at exactly how much in the way of differentiation there is between the tracks. The band has not been together long (only about 5 months), and to come up with something so professional and fun is a sign that they should have a career that spans quite a few years and albums by the end of it all. With four successes in the space of four tracks, there is little doubt that Kissing Cousins’ allure can be easily transcribed into an album of eleven or twelve tracks. There is beauty in simplisticity, and a great deal of the bands currently out on the market have (either deliberatively or not) forgotten that fact in the creation of overly-complex and frankly boring rock music. This EP may be the start of a revolution; just give a few years and see what Kissing Cousins have done since then.

Top Track: Phone Call

Rating: 6.0/10

[JMcQ]