Album Review: West Thebarton - 'Different Beings Being Different'

'Different Beings Being Different' isn’t just the title of the debut full-length from up and coming Adelaidians West Thebarton but serves as a relatively accurate description of what occurs over the eleven tracks they unleash on said album.

Much like the record's title, the music is catchy, rolls off of the tongue well, and has far-reaching and layered connotations of daring and confidence. The band's frontman, the ever- loveable Reverend Ray described the LP as: “real Aussie straight-from-the-gut rock. I wanted the record to be fucking grandiose, like INXS or Midnight Oil, but not try and be a pub rock cliché.” While the SA seven-piece definitely tap into the rich history of Aussie rock music and wear those influences proudly on their collective seven sleeves here, 'Different Beings Being Different' is certainly not cliché by any stretch of the word and does a remarkably good job of defining itself among its (past and present) contemporaries.

The immediate stand out element here is the sprawling energy that's splashed across the entire album with reckless rock abandon. There is not a single moment that didn’t feel like it was going somewhere, and getting there, one way or another, as fast as it could. In that sense, I can only compare this LP to the likes of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard’s psych-grunge rock dream, 'Nonagon Infinity'. Not only is there a crackling energy that I can only guess comes from having a notably larger collective being apart of the writing process and performances, but also an unstoppable momentum that ties 'Different Beings Being Different' to 'Nonagon Infinity'. (Go and listen to that record if you haven’t already – it’s a banger).

This does sometimes lend itself to some of the West Theb's debut albums "sloppier" moments, however, and I would have loved a little more space to breathe at some stage along the brisk album's 11-song way. Not to say that there aren’t moments of relief present, just that the sheer energy and momentum are so fantastically realised, that it sometimes needed to be controlled and harnessed a little better than how it currently stands.

Though, another big plus about the Theb's debut is the singing here.

Pitch perfect crooning this is not, and it may be a deciding factor in whether or not you are able to get into this record (or even this band) on the whole. For me, though, Ray’s decidedly real performance is the standout of the whole album. I immediately got shades of early King Of Leon, which can only mean good things, and the performance felt exactly like that – a performance. No takes edited to sound perfect, no overbearing compression squashing the absolute shit out of the sound; just a guy with a microphone going off over his band and taking us all along for the ride. The rest of the ensemble sometimes struggles to keep up with the sheer velocity of Ray’s passionate barking, but not through their lack of chops or ability. These elements then come together in a blood-pumping thrill ride of a rock 'n' roll album, and despite its smaller flaws, was one that really demanded my attention. Hopefully, it'll do the same to you.

Standing up tall in a long list of ever-growing Australian rock royalty, West Thebarton has proved on their new debut full length that they're not mere future dad-rockers; they are here to play loud and leave zero survivors! I’m beyond stoked to catch them live on their 'Different Beings Being Different' national headline tour this June, and you should definitely be thinking about catching a young band with big things ahead of them. Or, at the very least, check out this impressive debut!

1. Moving Out
2. Basic
3. Stuck On You
4. Gough
5. Bible Camp
6. Reasons
7. Anatomy
8. Ivan
9. Do You Believe
10. On The Hill
11. Set It Straight

'Different Beings Being Different' is out this Friday, March 18th via Domestic La La.