Hotel Our Demon Brother ( Under England ) Rating: NNN
Rating: NNN
On this effervescent seven-song mini-album, local alt-rockers Hotel betray their debt to the dark 80s pop of the Cure and New Order more blatantly than they did on their watered-down U2-ish Enjoy Your Stay debut. That’s a good thing. Singer Jack Forrest snarls with a vicious snottiness that’s sexy and British to the core, which makes for fab erotic tension when Joydrop chanteuse Tara Slone shows up to warble backing vocals on a few tracks. Producers Greg O’Shea and Jordan Zadorozny (of Blinker the Star) ensure the disc has the kind of sparkling pop production that’s tailor-made for rock radio play, which suits me fine, since I was waiting for a new crew of alterna-champs to wrest the mass market crown away from Our Lady Peace. Coming to a stadium near you. Hotel launch Our Demon Brother at the Horseshoe this Friday (October 17).
