Star & Dagger
Tomorrowland Blues
Cauldron 333
Star & Dagger’s second release and fi rst full-length album begins immediately with Sean yseult’s signature sexy burlesque-inspired beats and growling bass lines in “In My Blood”. Singer Von Hesseling has a powerful voice but doesn’t need to scream to get your attention. She sings naturally, accentuating certain words with guttural punches. This is especially evident in the title track: her voice leads the instruments that scale behind her, sometimes down to just one guitar. “Freak Train” is a standout song, as Hesseling sings cleanly and clearly over the distorted guitar tracks. That distortion fl ows into the next song, “Selling My Things,” (included on their fi rst release); the guitars are so crunchy and distorted that your body can feel it. It has a purpose: Star & Dagger wants you to experience the pain of having to get rid of your stuff just to survive. Dava She Wolf’s guitar busts through the din to play a very sad and disjointed solo. yseult opens “Sidewinding” with a snarling bass line that remains very up-front throughout the song. Hesseling is helped out with the chorus by her bandmates, with uncharacteristically highpitched and delicate vocals that provide a huge contrast to the spooky rock bubbling just below them. Star & Dagger make rock fun to listen to again, like rock ‘n’ roll was in the 1970s when played by T. Rex, Thin Lizzy, and another female band called the Runaways. But since it’s been forty years since 1973, they’re free to include aspects of music that have happened since, and this band uses all of their faculties to make Tomorrowland Blues one for the ages. –Emily Hingle
