Review by Rory McCartney
Not to be confused with the Pittsburgh band of the same name, Sydney pop-punkers Yours Truly released a debut EP Too Late for Apologies in 2017. Going one better, they have issued their first long player Self Care.
Yours Truly favours songs which draw parallels with Shakespeare’s statement, ‘The course of true love never did run smooth’ from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Their fraught songwriting continues the earlier EP’s themes of fractured love and betrayal.
Opener Siamese Souls bursts through in a solid wall of hazy guitars and a catchy chorus melody, in a tale of mourning over a love that has faded. The theme of fractured relationships carries on into Composure with its dark shades of menacing guitars intersecting before the band’s signature wall of sound crashes through. There is a strong tide of bitterness and blaming the other party, as band vocalist Mikaila Delgado sings ‘We were the flame, you burnt us out’. Despite the hurt, there is a beguiling melody hidden under the storming axes; a feature common to their songs.
Together, an examination of self-worth and a person’s place in the world, is an album highlight. It has an ultra-catchy chorus, and a tune that truly gets under the skin.
Vivid Dream changes the mood radically to a feeling of disbelief at how good life can be, whilst another winner Undersize changes the vibe again with a strolling acoustic driven pop song with echoed vocal hooks and a beautiful melody with whimsical lyrics. I love it!
Ghost slams through with a choppy rhythm, then the catchy Funeral Home supplies the quirky lyrics, ‘We’re dancing around in our funeral home’. Heartsleeve unreels a theme of relationship uncertainty and pain to the point of numbness, rounding off a pretty angsty record.
Production ensures that Delgado’s powerful vocals carry through clearly above the thrashing guitars. The band will appeal to fans of Stand Atlantic and Tonight Alive, and there is even a hint of sound reminiscent of Atlantis Awaits.
Self Care represents a great return of guitar driven power pop, to dance around to at funerals, or wherever else takes your fancy.
