Bluebottle Kiss
Come Across
Non Zero Records

Bluebottle Kiss delivers again. Come Across is a disc chock full o'
stunning musical moments, edgy emotions, distressing dilemmas, and powerful poetry. The maturation process is evident. The songs contain more creative arrangements that allow them to turn corners unexpectedly without losing pace or the listener. While Revenge is Slow displayed Bluebottle's ability to meld melody with artfully-noisy post punk, Come Across puts the band's incredible mastery of the pace and delivery of the song in the forefront. The way the band wields silence and space alongside the noise and feedback is deadly.

Other musical influences are also more evident as waltzes, country, folk, traditional pop, and standards show up to widen the distance between Bluebottle and just about every band you can think of. "Scouthall" starts off the disc plaintively in 3/4 time with a seductive arrangement that wraps itself around Jamie Hutching's vocal and leaves plenty of room to ponder the lyrical tale that ends, "and when I see her I'll have something to say-I'll probably just look the other way."

The next track appropriately raises the bar and was released as the first single off the disc. "Everything Begins and Ends at Exactly the Right Time" starts off burning slowly and picks up steam with every line until the train hurtles off the track into a twisted, angry, iron heap of feedback, reverb, distortion, and drums. It's definitely the perfect single to encapsulate the dark and divine Come Across. The band, along with Hutching's voice, exudes energy and power by the metric ton, giving the music irresistible weight while slowly building to the boiling point.

Bluebottle Kiss is like nothing else in popular music. In fact, lumping the band and its sensational songs into popular music seems a bit demeaning. Songs like "Last Playboy in Town," "Can I Keep You?," "Slow Train to a Comfy Jail," and "Sisters Head On" contain stories, emotions, and music that are leagues beyond what most bands attempt even once in an album, much less tune after tune.

Few bands are ever this good at achieving their musical vision with such power and accuracy, which puts BBK in rare territory. Australia is too small of a country to contain these musicians for much longer-cross your fingers and pray they touch down in your home town soon. Until then, snuggle up with Come Across and your headphones and content yourself with its dazzling darkness.

- Ryan Conrad, 3/22/2004