Clap Clap Riot had one main idea for their new album Dull Life, and that was that the songs had to stand up when played on an acoustic guitar. Opening with the ‘60s tinged Rising in the Street, it would be easy to hear this played acoustically. The recorded version however, has a psychedelic growl to the instrumentation. Tired Of Getting Old shimmers as a great indie summer jam and transports listeners to a tropical island rather than cold, wintery Melbourne.
The songwriting on Dull Life shines brightly due to the simplistic arrangements and driving melodies throughout. It’s an easy question to answer, but why would you over complicate something when you didn’t need to? From fuzzed out electric guitar on Help Me to a familiar guitar chord jangle on Curtis Pickett, the album pulsates along with vintage keyboards and big bass tones.
If you’re looking for an album to help that dream of hot summer days seem more vivid, get around Dull Life. Full of luscious soundscapes and dreamy guitar sounds, Clap Clap Riot are a band on the rise.
