By Josh McCann

Th Beaches are making waves in the alt music world. All thanks to their fiery (and extremely catchy) rock single “Blame Brett.” The Toronto based all female-fronted band formed in 2010, releasing their first album in 2017. “Blame Brett” is currently number one on the Sirius XM Alt Nation countdown! Their time is now!

The success of their lead single is perfect timing for their album release. The ten tracks (32 minutes) is filled with rocked out songs and grooves with a nostalgic factor reminiscent of Blondie. They also bring it to the present, putting their own spin on things.

The record opens with “Blame Brett.” It’s a really fun song that rocks. If you like that one, there’s more scorching jams ahead. “What doesn’t kill you” keeps that same attitude. “Me and me” shows a different side of the band. More toned down, with a cool beat.

They can do slower songs really well. “Everything is boring” is funny and will be stuck in your head. “My body” (featuring Your Lips) has an irresistible guitar lead meant for those long nights. Band members are singer Jordan Miller, lead guitarist Kylie Miller, drummer Eliza Enman McDaniel, and keyboardist/guitarist Leandra Earl.

The second half of the record is even better than the first. “Kismet” could be a big single. It has a great beat with crunchy punk rock guitar chords. “Oooh, I keep on running into you” Jordan Miller sings. Wow, what a lucky guy! It’s destiny! The buildup with Miller’s soaring vocals takes the last chorus into a party.

“Shower beer” conjures images of cigarettes and having a drink in the shower. “I’ll sip another beer in the shower,” Miller sings. The character wants to get messy. The upbeat melody helps! We’ve all stayed home on weekends, the rest of the world having fun while you scroll on social media. Very relatable!

“If a tree falls” is the longest song of the album at 4:26. Its a gamble to get away from the fast pace. The chorus is going to sound cool live. The post chorus guitar makes it even stronger.

“Cigarette” has a fast drum beat which brings to mind early 80’s rock acts. I grew up watching MTV in the 90’s. Okay, I was obsessed with MTV. They actually played music videos. I’d spend afternoons watching the countdowns and world debuts. I could see “Cigarette” being big in the early 80’s MTV era. “Yes, yes! I wanna be your cigarette!” Miller shouts. Yeah, there needs to be a music video for this one.

The beaches tour is nearly sold out in every city next Spring (only Columbus has tickets). Let’s hope Pittsburgh gets a date! One thing we know: songs off this record will make for an incredible show.