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Kerbside's Anything Strange?
by Louise Hodgson, musician.ie
Much like breaking-up, lo-fi is hard to do. There’s a fine line between boring and heart-stoppingly beautiful when it comes to simple guitar-based songs, and few people find the perfect formula. Kerbside walk this line dangerously close to boring on one or two songs but manage to swerve in the right direction more often than not.
But before we even get into the music, there are two things worth noting about this husband and wife duo. Firstly the packaging is pretty nifty, with a mini ‘record’ for a cd and an eye-catching jacket, so if we’re judging things by covers here, these guys get a well deserved ten out of ten. Then there’s the name: Sean and Kimberly Lightholder. Pah! to you, Nick Casablancas.
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Originally from the San Francisco Bay area, the Lightholders (seriously, how cool is that name?) settled in Ireland nearly four years ago and started doing covers in pubs and clubs across the midlands before introducing their own Spanish-twinged lo-fi tunes. Sean is the songwriter in the family and while both take guitar duties, it’s Kim’s occasional harmonies that stand out. Even more than the cover.
Continuing the illusion, the album begins and ends with the familiar crackling of an old record. We are introduced to Kerbside by ‘Mahal Ko’, a fitting summary of what to expect from the rest of the ‘record’. A track with a Latin feel sung in the deep, slightly grizzly version of Sean’s voice that wouldn’t seem out of place in a grunge band circa 1991, with Kim adding her bit or magic in all the right places.
Let’s talk for a moment about that voice, which takes over on second song ‘Departure’. The beauty of it is that it’s effortless: natural and full, she doesn’t need to shout or reach for high C. She just quietly, at times almost incoherently, sings along and each song is all the better for this.
Following three simple tracks comes the token alt-country up-beat tune. But there’s nothing token about ‘College Town’, a fun description of characters in his home town, whether that’s in Ireland or elsewhere. Three minutes of light entertainment. ‘10 Minute Anniversary’ also employs a set of drums and a bit of oomph, but suffers slightly from a poor, even annoying, chorus.
The Spanish finger-work on ‘Chastity’ and sweet lyrics of ‘Bookmark’ are both commendable, but it’s ‘The Ex-Patriots’ that is the next song to make a real impact. Again, Sean goes for a more grumpy pitch and comes off as being quite resentful, which is perfect for a track that includes the brilliant lines: There ain’t nothing in this world gonna make me feel/ You can call it what you want, I call it real/ Oh misery, where have you gone? Straight harmonies are abandoned with Kim opting instead to sing her four lines over and over in the background. It makes for an incredibly haunting listening experience that evokes every emotion from anger, to fear, to bitter-sweet love.
‘How Far’, another Kim solo, sounds like it came straight out of the streets of some small Iberian village. Great, if you’re into that kind of thing. ‘Travellin’ is about, you guessed it, a laborious journey, one we all take that ‘never seems to end’. Hmm, I wonder what that’s an analogy for. The use of a harmonica is a nice touch, especially for the subject in hand; you can imagine him taking a break from a long walk to, you know, have a bit of a sing-song on the side of the road. ‘Indian Dance’ finishes off the album on a bit of an anti-climax, it’s another sunny, light-hearted one that’s more ‘10 Minute Anniversary’-annoying, than ‘College Town’-fun. It’s a nod to popular music, but one that that won’t gain them any more listeners.
If we are to follow the general advice and not just judge by the cover, Anything Strange? might not get full marks, but it comes damn close. There may be one or two bleeps along the way but on the whole this is a collection of uncomplicated, simple tracks that coax hugely emotive reactions from unsuspecting listeners. And if I’m not mistaken, that’s the whole point of lo-fi.