If you never heard The Antiques when they delivered this debut album in 2007, you weren’t the only one. The band released their music on a tiny DIY record label, booked shows in small venues and was criminally below most people’s radar. At 14 songs in duration, The Antiques jumped in with both feet on Sewn With Stitches, keeping the time honored tradition of post-punk from our nation’s capitol strong, but not in the usual sense of the phrase.
What exactly separates The Antiques from our D.C. heroes like Fugazi, Jawbox or Shudder To Think? Well, first and most noticeably is frontman Greg Svitil’s deep vocals. Low and hypnotic, his delivery is certainly unusual. Beyond that, the abundance of organ and reverb places these songs on the gloomy side of the equation, with hints at shoegaze amid a very dark landscape.
To be fair, it’s not an entirely downcast affair. The opener “Tied To Nowhere” is a quick, upbeat rocker and the vivid guitar work on “You’re An Act That Can’t Be Followed” show the band’s diversity, or at least willingness to stray from their standard formula. Another anomaly, “One Day You’ll Be Sorry Too,” is musically brighter, though certainly not lyrically.
Not surprisingly, the best moments here are the ones shrouded in murkiness. The almost goth sounding version of Bright Eyes’ “Don’t Stand In My Room” is a standout early on, and the bass heavy and echoed “Brown Balloons” is a similarly great tune closer to the end.
With much of their discography being out of print and the remainder being difficult to find, it’s nice to know this album at least will live on digitally. Seeing as how it does contain several songs that were also on other releases by The Antiques, this is a big pretty chunk of their output and should serve as a great way to keep the spirit of this largely unknown outfit alive.
