By Rob Thompson
I first came across Vienna Ditto on BBC6 Music where I immediately noticed the blend of Hatty Taylor’s lithe yet husky vocals and Nigel Firth’s moody synthetic riffs. The band themselves define their music as ‘voodoo sci-fi blues’, which sounds strange but seems to fit after a few listens.
Whatever the genre, the band creates a truly distinctive sound merging intensely conflicting styles but without surrendering musical ability. The band is also getting a considerable amount of airplay and are gaining media attention: Q Magazine pronounced their music as, “wild-eyed rockabilly riffs with sparse, atmospheric electronica” and Huw Stephens from Radio 1 said they were, “Portishead doing a Tarantino soundtrack”.
Vienna Ditto also managed to get a 2009 Glastonbuy slot and are freely self-releasing their output via their website. So then what to make of their latest release? Well, each of the four songs has something exceptional to offer, and the complete EP is testament to the duo’s incredible range of talent. Combine that with phenomenally mature song-writing and melodic artistry and the result has the power to truly push music into a new, uncharted territory.
Liar Liar begins with the title track. Concentrated, thick guitars are contrasted against a percussive backing; Taylor’s penetrating vocals confidently hold the haunting tune. Towards the end of the song the synthesisers kick-in and increase the beat accentuating passion and power. This results in a house-style of pulsating rhythm before the track abruptly ends. This is a great taster of the things to come.
The opening track is followed with ‘The Undefeated’ which is a clear and immediate highlight. The riff on this song appears to be rather country, or perhaps even folk, based and it slowly and methodically reaches a surprising and unforeseen peak: reverb heavy samples bounce off jarring rhythms before Taylor’s voice is back accompanied by the melancholy guitar once again.
Next we have ‘Whatever Comes My Way’: a straightforward tune which showcases a different aspect of Taylor’s vocals. The last track on the EP ‘Little Fingers,’ skilfully fuses different styles and textures together ensuring a distinctive and dominant end to proceedings.
In summary, Liar Liar feels like a, sure set of songs and it creates a dark lingering melancholy, complemented with a captivating and enchanting ambiance. Absolutely brilliant. Go and listen to it straightaway!
