On both of the previous Pillow Queens albums, there have been moments that made me feel like I was in the presence of a great band. But at the same time, I have also found that sections of the albums didn’t meet that high threshold and even, at times, kind of washed over me. Neither In Waiting or Leave The Light On had the consistency to establish Pillow Queens as a band I can’t live without, even if both of them did leave me thinking that something special might well be on the horizon.
Name Your Sorrow might just be that special album. It opens with such a sense of confidence and power that the band seem to have immediately elevated themselves by a couple of levels. ‘February 8th’ shows us a self-assured group who know exactly who they are – from the heavy, almost droney guitar tone to the catchy as hell chorus. And while that opener presents a sombre, quiet side to the band – the jagged riff on ‘Suffer’ takes us into real rock star territory, as does another really impressive chorus structure. Two songs in, and all the promise of the first two LPs seems to have been realised.
‘Like A Lesson’ follows and with it comes a breezier, poppier style that also really suits the band. While we have already been on a bit of a journey in terms of style and genre, the personality that holds this opening run together is clear. ‘Friend of Mine’ comes a little later and continues the theme of variation mixed with a core identity. This song has the album’s most infectious chorus, and gives singers Sarah Cocoran and Pamela Connolly the best opportunity to display their vocal talents so far.
Other songs throughout the album also open up some comparisons to other bands that have never really occurred to me before. While I am not in any way comparing the voices to that of Skin, there is an element of Skunk Anansie in the guitar tone and song structure of ‘Gone’. ‘Heavy Pour’, potentially the album’s highlight, wouldn’t sound out of place on a Warpaint LP. The layers and the build on this track are captivating – a feeling which is only added to the clipped manner of the vocals on the verses.
There are a few moments on the album that threaten to derail it in the same way that we’ve seen on previous work of theirs. ‘Blew Up The World’, ‘The Bar’s Closed’, and ‘So Kind’ are all decent but less involving than what surrounds them. But these songs are spread out across the piece, which means we never get a prolonged lull – and some of the other songs are so good that they prevent any opportunity to feel bored. And then Name Your Sorrow finishes with a great one-two punch from ‘Love II’ and ‘Notes On Worth’, both of which show the best of what this band has to offer. Pillow Queens debut came just before a huge raft of Dublin bands exploded on to the scene and made it the hotspot for exciting guitar music in the 2020s. While it might be less loud and aggressive than a lot of the music coming out of the region right now, Name Your Sorrow makes it clear that Pillow Queens should be firmly in the conversation when we look back on the impact of Dublin bands of this era in ten year’s time.
Words by Fran Slater
Picky Bastards 