It’s always weird seeing the band you’ve watched dozens of times at whatever bar you frequent graduate to the national stage. Having witnessed a band’s clumsy early gigs, those support slots that don’t quite work and the shows during which everything that can go wrong will go wrong, it’s hard to be objective when you first hear that long-promised debut album.
For anyone in Perth, that’s the case with New Rules for Boats and Thousands, their first foray into the world of the long player. It’s been hard to avoid seeing them since they first showed up playing Wednesday nights at the Rosemount, the Hydey or whatever pub would have them. So with Thousands, it’s a chance for the band’s hometown fans to see whether the songs really were that great or whether it was just the deceptive ways of those cheap midweek jugs. But across the country, that’s not the case. For anyone in Sydney, Adelaide, Bendigo or wherever, Thousands might as well be the next great album from the fabled fountain of musical genius that is Perth.
With award winning producer Dave Parkin at the helm, New Rules have managed to mould the tracks they’ve been playing for so long into country-tinged indie-pop gems, most of which could stand up on their own as singles. Opening track Skips On My Record, the title track from the EP released earlier this year, is the perfect start, telling the story of a road trip in frontman Sean Pollard ’s Mazda 85 over a tune that sounds like a road trip. There’s more to come, with catchy vocal lines courtesy of Sean and sister and co-vocalist Miranda Pollard on Ten Cent Coins and I’m Your Tenant. The chemistry evident on Sean and Miranda’s tag team vocals give the album much of its character, with the tried and tested you-sing-this-verse-I’ll-take-the-next formula getting a regular run-out throughout the record.
The album isn’t all about the Pollard kids and their vocals, though. Just as important are the hooky pop melodies the songs are wrought around, the smart instrumentation and the way it all comes together. On Ashes, Sean steps aside to focus on guitar that complements Miranda’s vocal lines perfectly, while the gradual build-up throws weight behind one of the best tracks on the album. Parkin chips in with slide guitar on ’77, Ashes features subtle violin sounds and there’s ample brass to add a touch of sunshine to I’m Your Tenant, Touch a Touchy Subject and You’re Out.
Thousands does begin to drag as it nears its end, though, as 9 Years Old, Miranda’s other effort, fails to wrap things up nicely. Rather than reiterate the band’s knack for writing a decent pop tune, it’s as though the album is grinding to a halt. Despite some warm harmonies over a slow burner of a song and a sound that shows a maturity you might never have expected from New Rules for Boats, it’s more confusing than anything else. That said, with the overall quality of Thousands, it’s only a minor issue and doesn’t take anything away from the 10 tracks leading up to it. If you’re from Perth, you’ll be pleased at how the guys (and girl) have come of age. And if you’re on the other side of the country, expect to hear the words ‘new’, ‘rules’, for’ and ‘boats’ (probably in sequence) next time somebody mentions that fountain.
