Bands come and go. It’s always a bummer to have a band go when they have a lot of potential. Tawny Peaks are/were one of those bands. If the situation was different, In Silver River would have been a great sign of things to come. Sadly, it’s a swan song. It’s a good one though. They now have two great full lengths under their collective belt. They’ve made songs that are both memorable and accessible to first time listeners. All this makes them calling it a day a shame.
In Silver River is a great record that defies the sophomore slump. It continues some of the things they have done before, but adds some different dimensions. The main difference is that the band has grown up a little. They’ve made a more straightforward indie rock record this time around. It feels more like them than it does them playing too much to their influences. It is a pretty noticeable jump, and it really works.
There was nothing wrong with the mathy, more twinkly (ugh) sound they did on the first record. It was maybe a touch derivative, but fun. There was a lot of Kinsella worship happening there. While some of that old style still exists in certain places here, it’s not so overwhelming. In Silver River, as a whole, allows the songs more room to breathe. There isn’t as much noodling, the tempos has slowed down, and overall delivery is more reliable and comforting. It is, to me, more indie than emo. The latter influence is still there, but slightly less so. Songs like “Righting The Writ“ wouldn’t have worked on their self titled release. In fact, “A Broken Spoke” is probably the closest they come to their old songs.
All in all, In Silver River is a record any band would be proud to have made. It serves every function a record should. But, yeah, it’s kind of a shame that it ends here. Tawny Peaks were really making a name for themselves. Well, unless you were looking them up on Google. Because porn.
Team Reasonable 