Review: Camera237

Camera237 - Alone In An Empty Bed (Foolica Records)
I’ve never felt so energised by any Italian music before, and here’s a band with its own brand of indie rock, loosely based on electronica, though that’s not the only genre here.

Actually, the 'electronica' tag is a total misnomer (I wrote it to confuse you, of course); perhaps the indie rock reference is closer, although electro-pop might hit the nail on the head. The female vocals, when featured, would suit tracks by bands like The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, albeit with synthesizers providing the main instrumentation.

Although they’ve never before crossed my path, it turns out this is their third album. Their blurb claims they‘ve made a number of changes, including the addition of vocals, so unless they made two incredible instrumental albums before this little gem (unlikely - have you heard of them before now?), we can assume that those changes have been for the better.

'Alone In An Empty Bed' is a sublime album, and although I would’ve liked to have heard some more guitar in the mix, because when it is featured, it’s stirringly good. "Echoes Of My Brain" has guitar backing that veers towards mayhem, but controlled mayhem, and is a delight - I bet their live shows can be feisty. However, the album taken whole makes for a mellow time when listened to without distraction - the one bit of guitar mayhem aside, of course. "John Arne" is typical: it’s such a good piece, and are they vocals, or is it a gentle, suave synth providing the 'voice'?

This is a very unusual mix of tunes and instrumentation, never less than interesting, always more than you might expect. A well above average set of songs that fit together really well. That just about sums it up.
http://www.camera237.com/
Kev A.