When you listen to “Prague,” you are immediately drawn to the tight guitars, intricate drumming, and contemplative vocals. Then you learn that Braenavon is a three-piece, UK band of 17-year-olds, and their maturity and song structure blow you away. Belying their age, the band displays a precision, reserve, maturity, and sound redolent of seasoned bands like The National. Their musical preferences also seem seasoned — favoring convention and form over excitement and creativity.
“Prague” is the third track off Koso, their first EP following two released singles. It starts with a simple, solid guitar riff that lays the groundwork for a uniquely melodic drumbeat meshed hand in glove with bass before the vocals kick in. Both the layered guitars and quality singing are used impressively to express the brooding emotion of the song. The structure itself showcases the band’s aptitude for creating timely peaks and valleys that wax with chugging guitars and wane dramatically with accented, moaning vocals. The peaks and valleys expand repetitively toward the end of the song and culminate with a power predisposed for those coping with a lonely night.
Blaenavon sound like they’ve been at this a lot longer than they have. Even their tempered, softly desperate lyrics sound like they are gleaned from experienced love stories; not teenage infatuations. The only moment we can truly feel the band’s youth comes at 4:15 into the song, when the lead singer shrieks “you’ve been running through my head” with impassioned desperation akin to a ’90s Third Eye Blind crescendo.
Reminds me of early Kings of Leon