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Recording:
  Nothing For a Man
 
 
Artist:
  Spoils
 
 
Label:
  Happy Families  
 
Release Date:
  18.August.2023  
 
Reviewed by:
  PostLibyan  
         
 
Rating:
   
         
 
Review:
 

I have been doing EvilSponge for most of the current century, and i am now on a lot of mailing lists for various promotional companies. One that i get seems to feature a lot of bands from a geographic area that starts in Southern Indiana and stretches through southern Ohio and into the Pittsburgh metro area. This territory is, believe it or not, the ethnic homeland of your humble reviewer. I have relatives scattered throughout that area, and have visited many of the places that this promotional companies clients call home.

I never talk with my relatives about music. I am sure that they look at me in some obscure band t-shirt, talking about writing reviews online, and figure i am into "out there" stuff. Most of them probably listen to... well, whatever passes for "mainstream" these days. Taylor Swift? Drake? I am sure that my relatives like that sort of thing. None of them seem to be as into music as a nerd like myself, who delights in tracking down the weird and the esoteric to listen to. And that's fine. Most people are not as into music as me.

And in general my ethnic homeland is not a hotbed of musical activity. Very few artists of note come out of the Pittsburgh area, and only a handful from southern Ohio (Afghan Whigs and Guided by Voices being the two most noteworthy). But i listen to each of the promos i get from this area, hoping for something exciting.

This brings me to the band Spoils, who hail from Cincinnati, well within the lands of my people. This band has a generic name, one that is kind of hard to websearch. So I think that this is their second EP. It's all very vague.

But they are interesting and make some catchy, enjoyable music.

The band seems to be primarily the vehicle of songwriter, guitarist, and violinst Nina Payiatis. You don't see a lot of violinists leading bands, really. But here we are. Ms. Payiatis has a pretty voice, and her band surround it with light guitar, rolling bass, and cymbal heavy drumming (drummer Leo Martini REALLY likes his cymbals, especially on the choruses!).

The songs are mid-tempoed and fun, with catchy rhythms. Spoils reminds me of Chastity Belt, or Candace maybe. Girl indie pop at a middling pace. I like this kind of stuff.

Spoils start off their EP with a nice little instrumental called Intro. It's pretty enough and does what the name says. This flows into a song called David, which moves along nicely, swelling up on the chorus with an organ thrumming and Payiatis singing clearly about some dude named, well, David. Apparently he is some guy from her neighborhood who introduced himself after seeing her band. Must have left quite the impression to get a song about him. This is a fun tune.

Bassist Jack Doyle drives Figure It Out. Payiatis's voice is clear, crisp and the guitar is echoed and messy for maximum contrast. On the chorus, the gutiar grooves and Martini hits every cymbal he owns.

Light guitar, echoing in an empty room, starts off Riverbed (Redux), a re-recording a tune from their debut EP. Some strings drone in the background, and this song is mellow and kind of sad, but very pretty.

And finally Spoils cut loose on Come Closer. A male voice joins in -- the drummer or maybe the bassist? No credit is listed online. There are also prominent keyboards, and Payiatis really wails here, pushing her voice louder than on other tracks. The guitar here is all new wavish chime and tremolo, and the bass a nice rumble. Get yer new wave on!

But it's a solid effort. Maybe we will hear more from Payiatis and company.

 
         
 
Related Links:
 

https://happyfamilies.bandcamp.com/album/nothing-for-a-man
https://www.instagram.com/__spoils/
https://robinguthrie.com/
https://spoilsohio.bandcamp.com/album/find-later
https://www.facebook.com/SpoilsOhio/

 
         

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