Grade: C
After listening to the new Sleigh Bells album, “Jessica Rabbit,” I immediately had to put on its previous release, “Bitter Rivals,” to make sure I just listened to the same band. The difference, to say the least, is striking.
Coming on to the scene in 2010 with its debut record, “Treats,” Sleigh Bells felt like Brooklyn’s answer to Nashville’s rock supergroup the Dead Weather. With those two bands in place, we suddenly remembered how amazing noise and garage rock used to be.
If a group of angry, feminist cheerleaders from the 1990s decided one day to pick up instruments and channel their frustrations and hormones through them, you would have Sleigh Bells on its first three albums, and to me, that’s beautiful.
Just imagine Toni Basil, the girl who sang “Hey Mickey,” going through a heavy metal phase. That would be Alexis Krauss, one of the more underrated rock singers so far this decade.
Well, I used to be able to say that she was underrated.
With “Jessica Rabbit,” I now feel like she’s trying too hard to be like Lacey Sturm or Lzzy Hale with these overly moody lyrics and simplified instrumentation.
Don’t get me wrong, I can handle change of style and tone in a band or artist’s music. I was one of the first people to defend groups like Muse and Coldplay when they decided to branch out in their sound. I respect the courage to make such a commercial move, regardless if it’s successful or not.
However, it’s quite obvious in the case of “Jessica Rabbit” that the effort was not beneficial to the band’s artistry.
There is not a single funk record on this entire LP. The first half is made up of heartbroken, tearful ballads, and the second half is just a bunch of bland heavy metal sounds and whiny lyrics.
There are only two highlights on this 14-track record. One would be the 1980s pop vibe of “I Can’t Stand You Anymore,” which is perhaps inspired by the latest Carly Rae Jepsen record. The other is when Krauss screams “God only knows the hell that I chose” on “Rule Number One” like Brian Wilson on the worst kind of morphine.
Besides those, there is nothing to get excited about on this new record. You might as well just continue listening to Alicia Keys’ “Here.”
I can’t tell whether Evanescence accidentally walked into a nightclub while recording or if Taylor Swift is finally going through some sort of Taylor Momsen-esque goth stage. Either way, this is definitely not a Sleigh Bells album.
