Describing their music as "melodramatic popular song ", I don't know how seriously the S.R.Gents take themselves, but I'm always up for a challenge!
"Coming Down" kicks off their EP with a bouncing rhythm and jangly guitar, before adding a menacing, gruff vocal into the mix. Just to give an extra touch of colour, some Mariachi style brass is thrown in as well. As well as the language used in "L'Effluve", the music also has that Gallic cool jazz flavour. In contrast, "Bruises" is an exercise in moody introspection. Beginning with sparse, almost plodding drums and a melodic bass line Jules Frot's vocals rise to a rasping high during the chorus whilst managing to sound as miserable as only someone with a French accent can. "Soir De Fete" finishes the quartet of songs with more downbeat vocals over lightweight, even fey acoustic guitar and nearly transparent strings.
After having a hell-of-a-time finding a packet of Gaulloises in Glasgow, this Bluesbunny thought S.R.Gents to be an acquired taste. While the four tracks on this CD cover a wide enough range of styles to show that this band aren't one trick ponies, the downbeat, gruff vocals left me thinking "Bof".