Much has been made recently of the blooming success of the British four-piece Temples; accolades from the most compliment-stingy media outlets both stateside and in their native U.K., many referring to Temples as the band that finally concoct the classic 60-70s Brit-rock formula while still bringing a fresh sound to British rock & roll. Even the annoyingly opinionated Sir Noel Gallagher managed to massage their growing ego.
That said, I’ll gladly jump on the bandwagon of clichés. I’ll dive right in and mention the comparisons to obvious heavyweights like the fab-four, the Byrds, the Stones, and heck, even the Zombies, blatant influence similarities I’m sure the band themselves would wear those influences proudly. Being enough of a mature band, the gentlemen know their influences do not define them or their sound.
Temples are plenty talented on their own. Many press release have heaped various chunks from the sub-genre wasteland pile, involving terms like “new psychedelic indie,” whatever that means.
Their stripped down old tube amp style catapults slices of Revolver guitar riffs with graceful chord progressions and fluffy “Day Tripper” style melodies. Singer/bassist Thomas Warmsley and guitarist/vocalist James Bagshaw make modern guitar pop while sneaking in riffs from said bygone era. The record beautifully captures essence of classic 60’s & 70 guitar rock because although the modern uniqueness is present, it remains at is core, a period piece.
“Mesmerise” finds the band the personifying an almost euphoric aspect of psychedelia that matters, where songs like “Keep in the Dark” harken more to a 70’s almost glam sound a la T-Rex.
Still floating somewhat under the radar to the masses, Temples are finding success notching opening slots for the likes of Suede, Kasabian, and even the aforementioned Rolling Stones. I definitely see the band moving their way up the proverbial music industry food chain, probably with car ads, and commercial spots, along with a growing tour schedule, all of which will undoubtedly give Temples the kind of exposure they deserve.
Temples perform at a number of gigs and parties for SXSW 2014, including Fader Fort, SPIN, and the British Music Embassy Showcase.
Wednesday March 12 – Fader Fort (set time TBD)
Friday March 14, 2014 11:00am – 5:00pm
Stubb’s
Friday March 14, 2014 10:00pm – 10:40pm
Bar 96 (96 Rainey St)
Saturday March 15, 2014 8:00pm – 8:40pm
Textile (310 E 3rd St)
British Music Embassy Showcase
Saturday March 15, 2014 11:00pm – 11:40pm
Latitude 30 (512 San Jacinto St)
Temples then return home to play a number of U.K. dates:
Glasgow O2 Academy March 18
Leeds O2 Academy March 19
Manchester Academy March 20
Liverpool O2 Academy March 22
Nottingham Rock City March 23
Birmingham O2 Academy March 25
Bristol O2 Academy March 26
London O2 Academy Brixton March 27
http://templestheband.com/
http://templestheband.com/live
https://soundcloud.com/templesofficial/mesmerise-the-time-and-space-machine-remix
https://www.facebook.com/templesofficial
https://twitter.com/TemplesOfficial
