Gateway Drugs

Hailing from Los Angeles, Gateway Drugs are Gabe Niles (lead vocals, drums, guitar, bass), Noa Niles (lead vocals, guitar, keys), Liv Niles (lead vocals, guitar, bass, theremin), and Blues Williams (vocals, bass, guitar, banjo). If the Niles name sounds familiar, it's because this family has a little bit of experience in the music world. Their father was The Knack's Preston Niles. Don't let that color any prejudice about Gateway Drugs however, because this band doesn't sound anything like the music of their father's generation. As a matter of fact, on their new LP Magick Spells this band doesn't really sound a lot like the music of any generation but their own. Or, at the very least, you get the feeling that the kids might have been sneaking Jesus and Mary Chain records into the bedroom while dad was out on tour.

Up to the north in California, artists like Ty Segall, Thee Oh Sees, and Dodos have been defining the modern 'California Sound' of our new age as a fuzzed out, dark psychedelic haze. Gateway Drugs offer a brighter side to that coin, instead culling more from The Dandy Warhols or Kula Shaker. Yeah, there is still plenty of fuzz to be had on Magick Spells. But, that isn't to say the band are using it as a trick to make their world a darker place. Instead, the fuzz sounds almost like a by-product of turning the amps to 11 and rocking too damn hard.

Tracks like "Faith Healer" offer a pretty good glimpse into what these kids can do. It is that straight ahead, purely fun rock that will be enough to please even the most jaded San Francisco acolytes, while avoiding all of the unlistenable Imma-kill-your-baby meanderings those bands can fall into. Also working to soften the edge on Magick Spells are the great lead vocal turns from Liv. She isn't exactly Regina Spektor sweet, but she does have a certain tenderness of delivery that makes a great counterpoint against the rocking arrangements around her (just take a listen to "I'm In Love With A Teenage Heartthrob").

The fact that the band share singing duties is just one aspect of Magick Spells that keeps the album moving forward. One of the things that I hate to hear is a group clinging on to one trick for an entire album. It gets boring quickly and makes listening to an entire album more of an endurance test than leisurely enjoyment. Gateway Drugs do a lot to keep the album fresh by changing up not just their roles, but the songs themselves. I can't think of another album made yet this year that successfully transitions between songs as different as the sweet, old-school rock ballad "''Til You Come Home" and the heavy, BRMC influenced rocker "Black Wine of the Owl".

Altogether, I'm extremely excited by this outing. It is hard to successfully walk that line of writing accessible songs that aren't over-produced and boring. Gateway Drugs does it by adding just the right amount of volume and haze. But, the band doesn't ever forget that this is dumb fun and avoid stopping to smell their own farts. Magick Spells is the porridge that was just right.