The Rubens - The Rubens (02/11/2012)
New South Wales locals The Rubens have not only worked their way to fame across Australia, but they have well and truly earned it with a polished and captivating self-titled album. Despite their familiar sound to The Black Keys, The Rubens have taken their soul-flooded blues style and truly made it their own with their well-balanced musical arrangement and Sam Margin’s whiskey soaked voice.
Opening the album with a haunting piano solo, The Best We Got throws you into the deep of this album’s emotional turmoil. The Rubens’ soul drenched blues style is shown off to its fullest with Margin’s crooning vocals and the accompanying strings drawing the emotions of the lyrics to an angsty peak. My Gun, continues the band’s focus on blues rhythms, with the dirty guitars and 60s rock drums creating the Southern blues feel The Rubens have come to be known by. The catchy, if repetitive, chorus is certainly a standout moment on the album as well as a strong influence on this tracks recent radio success.
Working its way into the Triple J Hottest 100 and landing The Rubens in the spotlight, Lay It Down is the radio ready and groove heavy first single. As the first single, this track encapsulates the band’s attention to detail with the perfectly balanced blues melody and Margin’s heartfelt lyrics creating a powerfully emotional song. Elvis, the melancholic mid-point ballad of the album, plays slightly rougher than the rest of the album with muted, twanging guitar notes and Margin’s vocals blending into a lonely sounding love song.
The heaviest songs off the album The Day You Went Away and Don’t Ever Want To Be Found both play as drum-driven rock tracks but still maintain the emotionally charging qualities found on the rest of the album. Don’t Every Want To Be Found is a standout of the album with the guitar tracks building a dirty groove edge into the song that compliments the strength of the drums without overtaking the whole piece.
This album’s crafted blend of blues rhythms and soulful vocals create a well-balanced sound that is truly completed by the dirty, raw edge of the guitar tracks. While perhaps more suited to be streaming from the speakers of a dusty jukebox in a smoky pub, The Rubens is a strong start for a debut album.
Bethany Williams
Opening the album with a haunting piano solo, The Best We Got throws you into the deep of this album’s emotional turmoil. The Rubens’ soul drenched blues style is shown off to its fullest with Margin’s crooning vocals and the accompanying strings drawing the emotions of the lyrics to an angsty peak. My Gun, continues the band’s focus on blues rhythms, with the dirty guitars and 60s rock drums creating the Southern blues feel The Rubens have come to be known by. The catchy, if repetitive, chorus is certainly a standout moment on the album as well as a strong influence on this tracks recent radio success.
Working its way into the Triple J Hottest 100 and landing The Rubens in the spotlight, Lay It Down is the radio ready and groove heavy first single. As the first single, this track encapsulates the band’s attention to detail with the perfectly balanced blues melody and Margin’s heartfelt lyrics creating a powerfully emotional song. Elvis, the melancholic mid-point ballad of the album, plays slightly rougher than the rest of the album with muted, twanging guitar notes and Margin’s vocals blending into a lonely sounding love song.
The heaviest songs off the album The Day You Went Away and Don’t Ever Want To Be Found both play as drum-driven rock tracks but still maintain the emotionally charging qualities found on the rest of the album. Don’t Every Want To Be Found is a standout of the album with the guitar tracks building a dirty groove edge into the song that compliments the strength of the drums without overtaking the whole piece.
This album’s crafted blend of blues rhythms and soulful vocals create a well-balanced sound that is truly completed by the dirty, raw edge of the guitar tracks. While perhaps more suited to be streaming from the speakers of a dusty jukebox in a smoky pub, The Rubens is a strong start for a debut album.
Bethany Williams