Marriage License

Drinking Boys and Girls Choir

Drinking Boys and Girls Choirs have been one of my favourite recent musical discoveries. I've still been playing their last album Keep Drinking quite a bit, so I was incredibly excited to hear this new album from the South Korean three-piece. Compared to their last record, Marriage License is a much more streamlined and focused set of songs; just 11 tracks running around 23 minutes. The sounds and genres the band is playing around with hasn't changed all that much in the two year span between records, however, I did find this album to be not as crisp on the production end. I'm not necessarily against it, in fact the gruff exterior in my opinion harkens back to an old punk and hardcore aesthetic which interestingly frames the band's more pop sensibilities.

Some songs here have quickly become some of my favourites from the band. Tracks like There Is No Spring and Secret Revenge are insanely catchy power-pop tunes with great playing and melody. The end of the latter becomes quite decadent with this round of vocals attributed by all three members as well as some wonderful guitar lead flourishes. Another favourite, Odoby, is a speedy, car ride bop that once again showcases all members singing and shouting. I fell in love the first time I heard it and it still hasn't lost its lustre. A good majority of the vocals on the record are delivered by bassist Meena Bae and drummer Myeongjin Kim, but on Grab the Chance, new guitarist Myorori delivers a killer vocal performance. The vibe of this track is also different from any other song I've heard from them as it goes for that classic 'stay positive' hardcore sound.

The record has a really strong beginning and end but there are a couple tracks in the middle that are unfortunately a little underwhelming. The centerpiece, Attention is easily my least favourite track which has all these rock passages lazily stitched together and also features some really corny guitar solos. While I do enjoy Hit the Corner, it has one of the most dime-a-dozen chord progressions with not much added flare or attention to detail to make it truly stand-out amongst the rest of their songs. Lastly, Time and My Second Universe are more helpings of power-pop, and while there's nothing all that offensive about them, they don't really possess the captivating power of There Is No Spring and Secret Revenge.

The rest of the record, including the songs I haven't had a chance to mention, is fantastic. The vocals and the melodies are often so catchy and they also do such a good job of incorporating these little drum or guitar hooks which made bands like blink-182 such exciting songwriters. The only criticism I have is that they seemed to pay special attention to some songs over others causing a bit of an imbalance in the 'catchiness' factor. Also, despite Myorori being a new member, I would have loved to hear more of a vocal presence from him on the record. I'm not sure if the songs for this record were written during the transition between guitar players, but hopefully going forward, he could play a little more of a role vocally.