By Grace Romund (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: December 6, 2011
Bold and unabashedly candid is We Are Augustines, a Brooklyn-based band who has recently released their debut LP Rise Ye Sunken Ships in Canada. Evidence of the marring reality of a sometimes cruel world is the prominent theme of Rise Ye Sunken Ships.
The lyrics are largely written by lead singer Bill McCarthy who wrote primarily autobiographical musings of his troubled past on this debut album of We Are Augustines. The harsh and somewhat troubled tone which can be heard on the album is attributed to the fact that as McCarthy was writing the songs his drug-addicted, schizophrenic mother and brother both committed suicide. The album is therefore McCarthy’s eulogy of his family and reflects the part of his soul that died with them.
Unlike other melancholic and remorseful albums expressing only emotions of sadness with slow dirges, We Are Augustine marries indie rock with grief. And apparently when grieving in the indie rock genre, there are a lot of passively angry lyrics and rocking out to some pretty great guitar riffs. It is an album deeply infused with one individual’s personal struggles and heart-wrenching past and, as a result, is not for the faint of heart or for someone used to top 40 hits.
With the use of interestingly synthesized sounds, prominent electric guitar and heavy percussion in almost every song We Are Augustines takes listeners into McCarthy’s past to find either redemption, as in some tracks such as “Chapel Song” and “Book of James,” or intense anger towards family relations and—more generally—the world. On the track “Patton State Hospital” McCarthy addresses his dead brother James directly about his addictions when he sings, “We’re on a train / On some drug / Well it’s bound to drop you off sometime.” Patton State Hospital is a state-run psychiatric institution in California. McCarthy’s brother killed himself in a psychiatric hospital, and McCarthy felt a lot of anger towards them for the way it was handled – “Patton State Hospital” is his angry response.
The band seems to be able to keep clear unity and create some technically challenging and yet effective songs such as “Book of James.” Although their breakdowns in the middle and at the end may be a little too long to maintain the attention of a listening audience, it is still definitely a highlight of the album. However, one thing that does not seem to fit with all the rest of the musical elements in Rise Ye Sunken Ships is McCarthy’s voice, which can be described as howling, wailing, or moaning depending on the song, especially on the introductory track. “Chapel Song,” even after the first couple beats, has you captured by the instrumental quality of We Are Augustines, but when McCarthy starts singing “And I shake shake shake life a leaf” in a wobbly voice, it comes off distracting, not dramatic.
The heartfelt and honest nature of We Are Augustines is appealing to soulful individuals with a taste for indie rock. Rolling Stone magazine called We Are Augustines “a band to watch in 2011” and I think one would be well advised to watch for them into the New Year.
