Band : Burning Brides
Album title : Anhedonia
Label : Cobraside
Distributor : Sonic Rendezvous
Release date : 10/06/2008
Release : Digipak CD

This truly great Grunge and Stoner influenced Alternative Rock act was formed in 1999, although the basis was laid down when Dimitri Coats (lead singer/ guitarist) met his future wife Melanie Campbell (bass/ backing vocals) at the famed Juilliard school, where the first was studying theatre and the second modern dance. Having graduated, they decided on Rock music in stead, relocated to Philadelphia, and recruited drummer Mike Ambes soon after. The band made its live debut in May 1999, in support of Queens Of The Stone Age. BB gained more and more popularity in their local performances, and inevitably record companies were starting to flutter around the band. Chosing not to chose at first, they then entered the studio to record a cover of "Something In The Air" for the Nirvana tribute album Smells Like Bleach (issued through Cleopatra).

The trio would then sign to local imprint File 13 for the April 2001 release of their debut album Fall Of The Plastic Empire. In spite of getting some (at occasions raving) attention from a couple of music magazines, the album didn't really do very well at first, and the band was subsequently dropped by their label. No worries though, because V2 was ready enough to pick up the pace. Around this time (September 2002) the now married couple enlisted a new drummer in Jason Kourkounis (of Hot Snakes, Delta 72, and Mule repute), had Howie Weinberg remix the album for nationwide re-release (in early 2003), and recorded a couple of new tracks with producer John Angello for use as B-sides. With V2 giving the album the appropriate promotion, it returned to a wider media attention and increased popularity for the band. By the end of that year the band had prformed a total of 300 gigs, some of which included support slots to Marilyn Manson, J, Mascis, Rival Schools, Royal Trux, The Breeders, The White Stripes, and Mike Watt, plus tours with ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead and Queens Of The Stone Age during September, The Anniversary in October, and a short burst of headline shows in the UK during November. In 2003 the Buddyhead imprint would release a limited edition of the band's debut album and a Misfits tribute split single of BB with The Icarus Line (BB covering "Hybrid Moments"), both of which would be sold out in record time. The band itself opened the year's touring schedule in January for shows alongside The Catheters and Swedish act Division Of Laura Lee, followed with a support slot for Audioslave in February through March, and a further US headline tour during April and May with Detachment Kit and My Morning Jacket as supports.

The band's sophomore album Leave No Ashes (produced by the Black Crowes and Tom Petty credited George Drakoulias) was released in late June 2004. Although the album overall didn't fare as well as the re-issued debut, the track "Heart Full Of Black" not only got quite a bit of radio airplay, but also got taken into the soundtrack of video games Guitar Hero and Burnout 3. That same year would also see Dimitri and Melanie (along with other guests) contributing on the Mark Lanegan (former singer of Screaming Trees, currently also in The Gutter Twins) solo album Bubblegum.In 2005 the band's touring schedule began to have its effects on the band's unity: with the Coats' frequently taking drugs and "onstage hating each other every night", it gave the drummer reason enough to prompt his departure after the band's only headline tour for the album.
The couple replaced him with ex-Guzzards skin basher Pete Beeman, and the new line-up was soon found working on new material for upcoming album Hang Love. With Dimitri producing himself, the album was recorded in California by engineer Mathias Schneeberger (who they had get to know during the Lanegan recordings in 2004) and independently released in June 2007 with a distribution through Cobraside Distribution Inc. (who also releaseda vinyl version – which added 2 songs to the 10 of the CD – of the album a couple of weeks earlier).

For the recordings of the new album, the band again went to California to record a total of 15 songs, two of which are again exclusive to the vinyl version of the album. Far for me to give you a quasi-accurate description of the band's overall sound (Alternative Rock with Grunge and Stoner influences, which sees the lead singer backed up by either the bass player or the drummer – thus creating bothe female and male backings), I prefer to direct you to myspace.com/burningbrides, where the band posted no less than 6 tracks off the album. Should be enough to get acqainted with this very catchy trio. Of course, if Grunge or Stoner are not your thing, you've simply continued to read this article a bit too long. Personally, I can be troubled at any time to listen to an album like this to make a difference from the daily humdrum...but not for too long (meaning I get dulled somewhat by the melancholic tunes at repeated listening sessions). Still, this trio is pretty darn good indeed!

88/100

Tony.