#reviewoftheweek / The Beautiful Girls - Dancehall Days

It's quite possible that the Beautiful Girls were never going to make another album. Well, that's no longer true, and this one picks up right where their last one left off. The cool thing about this album is it visits another era in the roots reggae history of the band's influences. If their groundbreaking and critically acclaimed album "Ziggurats" showed off their eighties reggae and heavy Police/Clash influences then this album brings the band's influences firmly into the late 80s and early 90s. There's a lot of synth and piano driven beats mixed with incredible lyricism throughout the entire album. Their love and influence of dancehall reggae is evident, not only by the album name and title track, but by several other songs as well. Aside from the excellence of the title track, the other standout on the album is "Until My Kingdom Comes," which leads off about a minute of piano and keyboard driven instrumental, leading into smooth vocals combined with funky horns. The Beautiful Girls have been breaking the mold since their debut release, and keep reinventing themselves and their sound, keeping fans on the edge of their seats wanting more. This album is both a welcome addition to their catalogue and cool reinvention of their signature sound.