Indie Zone Reviews : Beth Jeans Houghton & The Hooves of Destiny – “Yours Truly, Cellophane Nose” (2012)

Label : Mute Records

Review by Luisa Mercier

Beth Jeans Houghton is a 22 years old girl from Newcastle, who is now releasing her debut album with the monicker of Beth Jeans Houghton & The Hooves of Destiny. “Yours Truly, Cellophane Nose” is a very nice record that mixes rock, art pop, folk orchestral sounds and other influences, resulting in something that vaguely recalls Florence + The Machine but with much more attention and care as far as arrangements are concerned. The album starts with “Sweet Tooth Bird” : choirs, very nice orchestrations, vocals that only on the surface may seem raw, but that are able to reach interesting emotional heights. It was also shot a video for this track, sort of weird mini-movie; you can watch it on Mute channel on YouTube. “Humble Digs” is indie pop enriched by folk music, I’d say the influence of country music is quite evident, but does not annoy. It is very nice, indeed. The other single is “Dodecahedtron” which is slightly melancholic and baroque. I got a My Brightest Diamond feeling while listening to it. I especially loved the vocal work that shows how Beth has a certain versatility in switching from a range to the other. “Atlas” has a structure similar to the other songs in the record: choirs, orchestra, percussions and a progressive attitude that makes Beth really different from the other girls in the indie scene. “The Barely Skinny Bone Tree” and “Liliputt” are maybe the most effective songs on “Yours Truly, Cellophane Nose”. The first one starts off quite slow, melancholic and gradually builds up til the final explosion, while the second starts with a delicate harp followed by strings, percussions and vocal lines which are really ethereal. “Veins” is the one closest to Florence Welch but with its own identity, “Franklin Benedict” has a nice string section and the closing track “Carousel”, as the title says, is full of violin solos. This debut is really fascinating and a must for all indie lovers!

Rating – 70/100

Tracklist

1.  Sweet Tooth Bird
2.  Humble Digs
3.  Dodecahedron
4.  Atlas
5.  Nightswimmer
6.  The Barely Skinny Bone Tree
7.  Liliputt
8.  Veins
9.  Franklin Benedict
10.  Carousel

Line Up

• Beth Jeans Houghton – Vocals, Guitar, Keyboard, Banjo, Loop Pedal
• Dav Shiel – Drums, Cajon, Keyboard, Vocals, Steel Pan
• Rory Gibson – Bass, Vocals
• Findlay Macaskill – Violin, Vocals, Eyebrows
• Blazey Blazey – Trumpet, Vocals, Guitar, Drums

Links

MySpace * Facebook* Twitter