Malakai- "Ugly Side of Love" Review

Malakai could easily be described as a music critic's worst nightmare. That is, the band, consisting of duo "Gee" and "Scott," does not follow the standard format of creating music which one can pinpoint as part of a specific genre.

Personally, I find bands that are brave enough to take such direction (or lack of) to be the most talented, and with this knowledge instilled in me ages ago, I wasn't surprised when Ugly Side of Love refused to bring me one moment of boredom. The album opens up with "Warriors," a brilliant song that not only samples parts from the 1979 cult film, but reflects the indefinable, auditory experience that's to come.

"Snowflake" seems to be a song about frustration, and I guarantee you'll want to roll your windows down and scream/sing along to this gospel-grunge-rock groove. "Blackbird" is another energetic yet schizophrenic ride through sound, which I can best describe as TV on the Radio meets the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz.

"Only for You" is a trippy, garage-rock song who's fading lyrics and melodies seem to reflect the song's title quite differently. Apparently Geoff Barrow (of Portishead) assisted Malakai on this track, (as well as discovering the band itself). "Lay Down Stay Down" has a 70s jazz-funk appeal, and could easily belong to that decade if only for the song's message, while "How Long" starts off sounding like the Guess Who's "Hand Me Down World."

Track ten is undoubtedly my favorite. Gee's vocals, like most of the album, resemble that of slightly warped Crosby Stills & Nash, while the song itself sounds like it's being played on a vintage stereo, scratches and all. "Another Sun" will indeed make you feel like you're listening to something created decades ago, and that's more than refreshing in an age where technology is used to make a mediocre piece of music sound more advanced than it ever could be. Concluding track "Simple Song" is a riddle that probably isn't meant to be solved, while "Fading World" is a morose journey that could easily be describing America in all of its economic an ecological turmoil.

Overall, this band from Bristol, England is anything but ordinary. Their sound will have your ears guessing until you succumb to the realization that Malakai isn't supposed to be ingested easily. Instead, I recommend listening to these guys with an open mind. In that case, you may just be blown away from hearing something (alas!) original.