Review – The Potentials – Cough Drops & Cigarettes – EP
The Potentials are a three-piece band from Virginia. On this two-song EP, Benjamin David, Ryan Wagner and Mike Riddile have created a nice little example of what good song-writing can accomplish. These two tunes, Mayday Baby and The Next Attraction are both good, strong dance/electronica tunes that aren’t that original but are as good as anything else out there and better than most. With this genre being flooded with new bands everyday and most of it cringe worthy at best this band manages to take the best parts of garage rock and mix it with the best parts of electronica and come out with something that is something so totally danceable and likeable that I was disappointed to only have the two songs.
Benjamin David is the chief songwriter and is pretty good over all although there are some rough spots with the lyrics. This can be overlooked because the arrangements are good enough to compensate for the lack of lyrical depth. David is also the singer and has a voice that sounds like Billy Joe Armstrong’s (Green Day, Foxboro Hot Tubs) at times with Johnny Rotten (Sex Pistols) undertones. If you go to their MySpace page and listen to No Getting Over you can hear a bit of it there.
I have to admit that I liked The Next Attraction better than Mayday Baby because it has a much stronger guitar presence and it showcases David’s voice better than the other songs. This is a song I can easily hear being played at the dance clubs with it’s supremely catchy chorus. I was singing it around the house most of the day. The only thing that I don’t like, and anyone who has read anything I’ve written on the subject will know, is the use of a drum machine. I think a harder drum beat, one with more presence, would only benefit these songs. The use of the drum machine waters these down and they lose the necessary oomph (yes that is a technical term) that gives good electronica it’s potency.
Overall, this is a band that I think I will keep an eye on. I think with a bit more experience and time in the studio with a good producer The Potentials have the ability to turn these few tunes into a fine album. You can find more info and listen to some more tunes on their Myspace page. They are also on Twitter and Facebook. You can buy The Potentials on iTunes.
Have a listen and see what you think:
The Potentials – Mayday Baby
The Potentials – The Next Attraction
