Now on their third record, Dublin art-rock six-piece Silverbacks have reached new heights on ‘Easy Being A Winner’, the most experimental, exciting and downright fun album of their discography so far.
With members scattered everywhere from the suburbs of Paris to Drogheda, ‘Easy Being A Winner’ finds a band content in their boundaries; with live beyond the studio providing more than enough solace to alleviate the pressures of releasing music. This in and of itself offers the band the opportunity to experiment the way many others would fear; introducing new sonic palettes with increased woodwind sections and added guitar lines.
Not only have the band introduced new instruments, they’ve also welcome onto the record some of their nearest and dearest, with ‘Something I know’ featuring a clarinet line performed by band members Daniel and Killian O’Kelly’s father, a man to whom they owe almost their entire career, given it was he who first rared them to have an interest in music.
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As with their previous album ‘Fad’ (2019) and ‘Archive Material’ (2022), ‘Easy Being A Winner’ recorded in Stoneybatter, Dublin with Gilla Band’s Daniel Fox on production. Across its 11-track run time, the album jumps between influences as far reaching as Stereolab on ‘Something I Know’, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Yo La Tengo. It’s upbeat pacing throughout the record gives it a lovely sense of propulsion, with the listener therefore more willing to take the journey to some of the more far-out melodies and textures introduced in the album’s second half.
Compared to its predecessors, ‘Easy Being A Winner’ feels like a band more comfortable in their skin, unafraid to be upbeat; at the same time as many of their fellow Dublin bands following the more aggressive but no less successful post-punk route. Silverbacks themselves feel the same, with lead singer and guitarist Daniel O’Kelly saying in an interview with SPIN in support of this album that, while they didn’t make this album to distance themselves for post-punk, this is certainly the first time he’s felt the band has sounded how he’s always pictured them: an indie-rock band.
Sometimes the most obvious thing is the best thing, and with that in mind, the band’s decision to steer clear of the darkness has seen then thrive; with tracks such as ‘Billion Star Night Light’, ‘Spinning Jenny’, and title track ‘It’s Easy Being A Winner’ amongst some of the best they’ve produced. ‘Easy Being A Winner’ feels like a liberation of sorts, and long may it continue. Third time’s the charm.
8/10
Words: Cailean Coffey
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