Epicure - Armies AgainstMe

Thu 1st Apr, 2004 in Music Reviews

If you’ve listened to Triple J in the past six months, especially the Home and Hosed program, chances are you’ve heard of, or at least heard a song by, Epicure, a five-piece from Ballarat.

Now their breakthrough song, Armies Against Me, which ranked at 21 in last year’s JJJ Hottest 100, has finally hit the shelves in single form. The titular track layers accoustic guitars over a slide and keys backing, perfectly complimenting lead singer Juan Albarn’s delicate yet confident vocals. It creates a superb atmosphere of yearning, and ever-so-slight desperation, without resorting to the overly angsty lyrics that plague so many of their peers. The song isn’t afraid to pick the tempo up and then let it down softly again, while Albarn calls out to a girl, “Was it signed in lipstick, or signed in blood? I guess now I’ll never know.”

The b-sides are excellent as well. Every Day is a superb road song that wouldn’t feel out of place over the closing credits of any movie about self-discovery, while Where You’re Not opens with an acoustic guitar so light, it feels like it might float away, and stays that way, as Albarn handles singing and guitar duties solo. Epicure have made a superb debut, which should whet listeners appetites for the release of their debut album “The Goodbye Girl”. Expect to hear much about these guys in the future.