Thrice – Beggars

Thrice really did pass me by, and I’m bit gutted that they did because I dig (dawg) energetic American guitar bands. Particularly Californian ones. I think I have been very ignorant, making assumptions that this genre of music was all about balls to wall louder-than-thou recordings.

So to discover that my favourite thing about Beggars is that the sound is so so honest… A million miles away from what I expected… Well that’s sort of embarrassing.

This recording is not steeped in perfection; atypically I think. It is raw, and you can hear every note of every guitar. Every mistake. Every phrase that isn’t quite perfectly timed. It’s all there, but it never, not once, jars on me. So much the opposite.

Furthermore, all the instruments are localised and miked to be heard, and it gave me a real sense of being right there in the room. Sometimes the technically-perfect record doesn’t give you that.

Beggars swaggers in with All The World Is Mad and within the first 5 seconds sets the tone for the whole album. Oozing with attitude, the bass sound is strong from start to finish. The drums are tight in timing and sound, given plenty of space to breathe in the mix.

The guitars don’t sound great in of themselves – but my god they sound LIVE! And that is so refreshing. It all comes together to make an album that is as rock as Zeppelin, and contemporary as Limp Bizkit, without compromise.

There are little moments of bliss in hearing the intimacy of the groove on tracks like Circles, and I’m practically jumping around, punching the air for the powerhouses The Weight and All The World Is Mad. Most of the rest sits inbetween, powerful choruses, and leering verses with arrogant gait.

I’ve still got plenty of Thrice back-catalogue to sift through, and I hope that by the time I’m done these guys will be back on the road because I’d love to be in the thick of the pit for some of these tunes.

Recommended by Jerome