Colt- These Things Can't Hurt You Now So

Emerging from the shadow of their original band name, Living With Eating Disorders, London's Colt deliver 12 tracks of dark electronic rock with strong ethereal leanings on their full-length debut, These Things Can't Hurt You Now So Throw Them in the Fire. Fronted by vocalist Andrea Kerr, the trio's stylistically eclectic yet accessible sound covers a fairly wide range, from the very Portishead-esque opener "Never Know" to the airier, almost childlike ethereal "Fading Softly" to the more powerful electro-rock of the religious-themed "I Talk to God" and crawling guitar-oriented alt rock of "Menace". With impressive songwriting and production that makes good use of both sonic layering and sparsity, as well as both simplicity and intricacy, it's an interesting outing with plenty of cross-genre appeal.

The spectacular "Demon in the Woods" is another of the disc's highlights, slowly developing from sparse ethereal number to all-out rocker, while "Body Bag", another strong offering, follows a slightly more subdued but similar developmental path. The lush-yet-intricate "Dark Nevada", distant music-box-like piano melodies and occasional dissonance lending a slightly unsettling edge to its ethereal mix, also stands out. "Envy" is notable, if only for the fact that its distorted rock chorus provides the album's heaviest moment, while the unexpectedly up-tempo opening of "Death and Sequins" leads to a spectacular spacious rock track and chaotic album finale. However, even the album's barest ethereal moment, the simple single-synth progression of "Feeling", is nicely carried by Kerr's vocals and, as a result, fairly dynamic.

With trip-hop, ethereal, alt rock, goth rock, electro, and industrial elements, not to mention at least some overall appeal for fans of each of those genres, the album is, overall, a diverse yet cohesive work that fairly successfully defies categorization. Whether pushing ahead with emotive, intricate rock or riding high on pure atmosphere and charisma, Colt's These Things Can't Hurt You Now So Throw Them in the Fire, while a bit of a mouthful, shouldn't be missed.