SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE AQUADOLLS – CHARMED

The Aquadolls
Charmed
Enci Records

Charmed is Los Angeles-based femme-punks The Aquadolls’ third album, and from the start, it’s noticeably more punk than their previous efforts. This album also marks the first time the trio have written as a collective, and it’s apparent that this has allowed every member to shine as soon as one hears the opening, and possibly strongest, track, “Far Far Away”, a fantastic, single-worthy slice of punchy poppy punk led by the ferocious, melodic bass of Keilah Nina and the deliberately opaque lyrics of lead singer Melissa Brooks.

The power and infectiousness of the rhythm section is apparent across the entire album, while Brooks’ honeyed vocals and lyrical ambiguity allow her to drip with vulnerability and menace all at once. It’s a wild, fun, feel-good ride, with some wonderful highlights like the grower “Sneaky”, but it also maintains a dark, brooding edginess by brutally juxtaposing the likes of “Your Heart Belongs To Someone Else” and “Beachy”, tracks which could’ve been grown in a laboratory to find the perfect pop-rock radio hit, with the straight-ahead punk thrash of the album’s closer “Cut Throat”, a snarling, violent coda full of defiant feministic attitude.

Overall, Charmed is a great listen and fantastic album that does a superb job of meshing spiky punk with anthemic singalongs to make repeat listening inevitable. With The Aquadolls due to appear at Riot Festival on the back of Charmed’s release, you get the feeling this album could be a snapshot of the moment they hit the big time.

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