REVIEW: Dye It Blonde By Smith Westerns

I think it’s fair to say that summer is well and truly on the wane. It may have been last night’s purple-hazed sunset at Raglan, or the hot air balloons floating gracefully through this morning’s crisp Waikato air; whatever it was it, the nostalgia that autumn brings has truly sunk in. So it’s goodbye to rounds of 'Barbara Anne' with my beach boys out the back between sets, and a frosty hello to our old friend, winter. And as usual, I’ve stumbled upon the correct artist/album to neatly sum it all up.

The cover art for Smith Western’s debut record Dye It Blonde is actually perfect. The sun-aged colours of the falling leaves are indicative of the musical content contained within – a swirling pool of memories buried within a 35-minute melee of 70s-slanted psychedelic pop-rock. And just like the real autumn, it also continually involves another forlorn old friend – love.

“Weekends are never fun unless I’m with you”, pines album-opener 'Weekend', and why should they be? The time-honoured song-writing tradition of detailing the intricacies of love, love, love is introduced here and well explored throughout the entire record. The Beatles, Stones, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin all did it; it’s a theme that isn’t going to end any time soon.

Smith Westerns - Weekend

Through Dye It Blonde, the Smith Western’s lyricists twist and pout about the ‘feeling everything’ that love brings. 'Still New' reveals that “no doubt/it’s you I think/and dream about”, 'Dance Away' explores the start of the affair: “it started in your heart/it started in your dreams/it took up all your time/it took up everything”, while 'Only One' agonisingly protests the protagonist’s faithfulness: “everything I am doing/I do it for you”, and “I want you to feel what it’s like to be loved and always liked”. This is one romantic gentleman, ladies – he is also a fantastic singer!

Standout single 'Imagine Pt. 3' is a definite autumn anthem; bursting with memories, and providing some heavily danceable moments. The hook-happy pop track throws out some of the record’s more obtuse lines; “in the corners of your heart I tried to make love grow”, “the look in your eyes/ makes me wanna die”, and “love and lust/how come they are such a must?” all slide the listener straight back into those sun-glossed days of youthful romance.

Smith Westerns - Imagine Pt. 3

On a less emotional and more technical note, the record is very well produced. Layers upon layers of digitally-adapted guitars, piano (and organ) lines, and vocal elements all chip in to produce walls of sound, cementing the romantically attuned ballads. The sounds and words complement each other well, creating an overwhelmingly vivid aural glow. The final track ('Dye the World') implores us all to “dye the whole world blonde”, and with summer just behind us, the idea is quite tempting.

Maybe it’s just what we need to get us through the chilly months ahead before daylight savings kicks in again. Here’s hoping.

Written by Theo Sangster