If ever there was a truism it is that some of musics finest songs through history have been crafted through the writers own personal experiences of being at the bottom of the blackest hole, and evolved out of the suffering, pain, loss and hardship that ensued. So it could not be more relevant than what the Brooklyn-based We Are Augustines vocalist and lyricist Billy McCarthy has delivered up on Book Of James.
Taken from their forthcoming album Rise Ye Sunken Ships to be released next March, this is a eulogy to his late brother James, and penned in the aftermath of losing not just his brother, but also his mother, a schizophrenic, both of whom took their own lives. That in mind, whilst the subject matter and indeed, lyrics (I tried the Bible, tried the bottle/Tried the needle, tried to love people/And in the end, there aint much to say) may not exactly engender thoughts of cheery nonchalance, Book Of James actually turns out to be an exuberant, uplifting work that is carried by the rawness and impassioned vocals of McCarthy.
Cleverly and adroitly worded, it rocks along on a pounding drum start and one of McCarthys trademark yelps, then moves into a five-minute ride of typically buoyant WAA orchestration; allowing for gentle breaks of jangling guitars, keyboards and pulsing basslines that blend and shape-shift throughout. At points where McCarthy softens the Springsteen-esque pitched drawl, adopts a softer tone to opine the words youre forgiven, you feel you have been brought to not just the heart of the song, but to the writers own heart. Book Of James is a fine tribute, to both the loss of a loved one and to what are proving to be one of the best indie rock bands to have emerged from across the pond.