The Blood Arm - Bomb Romantics

First things first, if you’re not from the US (and lets face it, most of you aren’t) you may have trouble getting hold of this. You’re not going to find it in your local branch of HMV however hard you try. So, why, we hear you cry, are we reviewing it? Why would a UK based music website be telling you about an album that you probably can’t even listen to?

Easy. ‘Bomb Romantics’ is the best debut album we can remember hearing in a very, very long time.

Sure, you’re running off names in your head already. You can take your Oasis, Strokes, and White Stripes and shove them somewhere the sun don’t shine. Forget your precious Libertines and Franz Ferdinand, because they don’t even come close. LA’s The Blood Arm mix Doors style retro cool, back room blues, raw guitars and rawkus piano with an ear for a good tune. They’re a genetic hybrid of everything good about todays music scene, with all the bad bits taken out.

It’s criminal that the entire world hasn’t discovered this hidden gem yet. ‘Do I Have Your Attention?’ doesn’t even need to ask. Kicking off the record with a bang, it’s a statement of intent - a full on assault of everything The Blood Arm are about, and an anthem in waiting. ‘Opportunity Knocks’ follows it up with a swagger that most bands take years to develop, and we all know how amazing ‘Can I Unwind?’ is - the track having topped our own Buzz Chart a few weeks back.

Every track deserves it’s own roll call here. ‘How We Were Eaten By Wild Animals’ has charm and punch to spare, while ‘Hey Girl!’ shows a more sensitive side to the band; is there anything they can’t do?

To find faults with ‘Bomb Romantics’ would be like the people who complain about winning too much money on the lottery. If there is any justice, if anyone ever paid attention to us - they’d get The Blood Arm over here as quick as possible. Quite simply, a brilliant debut.