CD Review: Touch by July Talk

July Talk’s reputation has been built on its dichotomy between light and heavy. From Leah Fay and Peter Dreimanis’ battling vocals, to songs prone to quickly changing from soft to heavy in a heartbeat. Their new album Touch takes this sensibility farther than they’ve gone before.

Moving away from the heavier blues sounds of their debut album, Touch flawlessly integrates songs with a driving dance beat into an album that could otherwise be defined as garage blues. Their single, Push + Pull is possibly one of the most dynamic songs on the album and proves the band’s ability to do more than the guitar heavy rock that’s come to be expected of them.

Touch is an album that’s pushes the band’s obsession with contrast to the max. Mood, speed, and sounds will change at the drop of a hat, but the energy that Fay and Dreimanis always provide carry the audience along keeping them engaged through the whole album.

July Talk
Touch
Sleepless Records
Score: A-

— Andi Endruhn