Album Review: Saskwatch – Sorry I Let It Come Between Us
2 min read
Like that one friend who always gets too drunk too soon, Saskwatch are loud, melodramatic, and brutally honest. But like that self-same friend, they’re also a great deal of fun. Sorry I Let It Come Between Us is a raucous collection of soul indebted tunes that rattles and rages with a delirious sense of optimism. It’s a brazen record, both sonically and thematically, and even when the proceedings veer towards the melancholic, as they more than occasionally do, the album’s presiding emotion is one of cathartic ecstasy.
Album opener I’ll Be Fine kicks the proceedings off on a high. It’s a hook-laden, energetic number that sees the band at their most poppy and dramatic. In Your Arms is similarly infectious, though it is slightly more restrained; built around an infectious guitar riff, the song sashays and swings with lust and style.
Indeed, ‘style’ is the key word here. The record is coated in a classy sheen that stops the potentially cheesy guitar licks that dominate a song like Everyone’s Giving Up from ever feeling dumb or derivative. Saskwatch are a band that knows how to stop the slightly more outrageous elements of their sound from ever becoming parodic. They care deeply, both about their audience and the legacy of their genre, as a track like the cowbell saturated Time To Let You Go proves.
When the band move towards a slightly darker place, as they do on the masterful Spitting Image and album closer Your Drug, they demonstrate an admirable control of tone. Without ever seeming plaintive or whiney, they manage to tackle a sense of tear-stained honesty head on. Utilizing the full force of their six members, they craft tunes that delve deep into wells of pain and heartbreak, but do so with an admirable resilience and strength.
Of all the album’s songs, however, it’s Blind that impresses the most. It’s a thrilling, brilliant number; a caustic yet tender track that slowly builds in intensity, culminating in a kettle shriek of emotion that feels hyperreal and yet totally relatable.
With a distinct combination of panache, intelligence and energy, Saskwatch have turned in their finest record to date. The band know their strengths and how to play on them, but they also know the importance of risk-taking and adventure. In short: with Sorry I Let It Come Between Us Saskwatch have absolutely nothing to apologise for.
