Delivering vengeance with electric swagger, Southern Belle’s latest tracks evoke the fresh confidence of someone wronged and looking to settle the score. Frontman Isom Innis has mastered the sound of getting even, and revenge has never felt so danceable.
On “Walk Out,” Southern Belle fuels revenge-ready lyrics with an incessant, gravelly beat. Like the foreboding calm before a storm, the verses seethe with cool, thinly-veiled contempt; Innis’ laundry list of grievances collide with a swelling sense of conviction in the chorus – this is the sound of someone ready to call the shots.
Another standout, “Conditional Love,” launches with a searing violin riff – not the most threatening weapon of choice, perhaps, but Southern Belle tricks it out on the turntables, sharpening it to an ominous point. The song’s steadily urgent beat feels like the stride of a newly self-possessed man headed toward a confrontation, and the aggressively riotous chorus doesn’t disappoint.
See them in action on Thursday, June 17 at Middle East Upstairs. Tickets are $10 in advance/$12 at the door. In the meantime, listen to “Walk Out” and “Conditional Love” and check out some concert photography from the band’s TT the Bear’s appearance from earlier this year.