The Blood Brothers – Young Machetes

The Indefinable Blood Brothers

With elements of funk, punk, 70’s glam, new wave, experimental, dance rock and indie rock its hard to pin down Seattle’s The Blood Brothers. Although the band broke up in October ’07, their latest release, Young Machetes., is a remarkable album. Produced by Guy Picciotto of Fugazi fame along with John Goodmanson (who produced the band’s previous record) Young Machetes is a force to be reckoned with.Everything about The Blood Brothers is unique, especially Jordan Blilie’s vocals, ranging from smooth and introspective on tracks like “Lift the Veil, Kiss” to those where he sounds like a little boy screaming out in pain like “Laser Life.”

The style and structure of each song on Young Machetes matches Blilie’s distinctive range. Bouncy rhythms and fuzzy guitars will suddenly careen into a slow, melancholy tune like on the track “Camouflage, Camouflage,” which starts out very fun and danceable, then swiftly changes into a theatrical Beatles-esque sound. Then, out of left field comes a song like “Rat Rider” which is a fast paced little romp through punky new wave territory. The album ends with a slow and bluesy tune called “Giant Swan,” which has a heart-wrenchingly beautiful melody with a classic rock feel and dramatic build up at the end.

Who cares if this band can be classified? What matters is the well-written, well-played, uniquely timeless music that it creates and Young Machetes is a perfect example of this.