Quick Reviews: The Beautiful Monument, The Iron Roses, & Sarah And The Safe Word

We haven't done a quick round-robin in a while, and recent weeks have gives us three albums that broke up the rather humdrum release schedule. Why pick just one to cover, when I can get to all three of them?

The Beautiful Monument - Euphoric Thriller

There was a period of time when female-fronted rock/emo/post-hardcore bands seemed like they were popping up everywhere. I liked a number of them, but few have managed to keep up the momentum those early impressions created. Among them, The Beautiful Monument was one of the bands that slipped through my mind much of the time, despite their first album being a fine example of why I was seeking out bands like them. Album number two has the difficult task of not only following up a good one, but also having to be a reintroduction, simply based on how much music I hear and how much of it gets lost in the shuffle.

Over a brief thirty-one minutes, the band dips their toes into modern electro-pop sounds, with several bits that feel ripped from Billie Eilish's oeuvre, which unfortunately is not what I want to hear. Many of these songs bog down through verses with bass and electronics, and little energy to propel them towards the choruses. Those hooks also feel more static, and less lively than before. All of that gives the impression of a band that is trying to skew to a younger audience, who is not me, so this is definitely not going to be speaking to me in the same way.

The Iron Roses - Molotov Nights

It takes a lot for a punk record to make an impression on me, but the debut from The Iron Roses did just that. It was an album that spoke political truth, but did so with an intriguing blend of dual vocals that is rare to hear in any form of rock. That was the highlight of the album, but it was a record that brought the catchy melodies needed to keep the message echoing through our heads. In the back of my mind, I was going to be interested to hear how they followed that up.

Over an even briefer twenty-three minutes, the band wastes little time getting straight to the point. They hit the chords hard, aiming for the hook from the get-go. Unfortunately, this batch of songs didn't hit me as immediately as their previous album. There's understandably more anger this time around, but that works against them, as the interplay of vocals and melodies that made them so appealing is tamped down a bit this time, as the songs almost rush through before there's enough time for the choruses to unfold as they need to. There's also a bit of an issue with the mixing, where the dual vocals aren't always balanced, or audible, enough for that layering to be as effective as I would like.

Sarah And The Safe Word - The Disappearing Girl

The band's previous album made my year-end list, which should have given me cause for excitement this time around. In the meantime, there were a couple of one-off singles from the band and from Sarah Rose, none of which hit me with the same level of surprise and fun as my first experience with the band. I wasn't sure if their 'cabaret emo' was a one-off experiment that caught me at just the right time, or if it merely didn't work in shorter doses where I can't fully slip into character. Now I know the answer.

Over another brief thirty-three minutes, Sarah gives us a set of songs about the struggle of reinventing yourself. The band's cabaret stylings are evident, even as much of the record feels more aggressive than before. The guitars are pushed forward, the violins sitting lower in the mix, replaced in some places with extra sound effects. That tells the story, but I do think a bit of what makes the band unique gets pushed down when the violin and throwback swing is more of a background element to the proceedings. Whether we call this record more focused, or more narrow in scope, "The Book Of Broken Glass" felt like more of a journey we were being taken on. This one is more like a chapter than an entire play, giving me the impression there's 'more' that isn't being said just yet. What is being said is good, and this is clearly the best of the three albums we're talking about today. If it's not as good as "The Book Of Broken Glass", it isn't missing by much.