Writing rock guitar riffs has become a more risky business as time went on. Overuse of pentatonic runs and excessive overdrive used to saturate the tones has made writing riffs a craft that puts you at risk of repeating somebody else’s work, unintentionally, or maybe even with intention. But every now and then we come across a new name and it becomes immediately clear that something special is in store, and this is how it felt jumping into Eric Sleeper’s debut album Beautiful Lies. Let’s take a closer look.
Eric Sleeper is a singer and songwriter based in New Jersey. Having been writing songs and riffs since he was 14, the first thing that becomes clear on Beautiful Lies’s starter track ‘Ghost’ is a sense of fluency on the instrument. Yes, those are rock riffs. Yes, they are overdriven and edgy, but they’re also novel, fresh, and exciting, and they do that exceptionally hard trick of sounding like nothing else I’ve heard before, which got me so excited for what else the album has in store.
For starters, Eric Sleeper is a fantastic guitar player. The craft is tight honed, Eric’s tones throughout the album are carefully balanced and are consistently in tune with the rest of the arrangement that surround them, going from harsh and in-your-face, to ambient and expansive , to swirly and seasick with great efficiency, always maintaining a rhythmic tightness and a certain inventiveness that makes each of the album’s 10 songs distinctive.
The album has another feature that I personally have come to really appreciate over the years, which is a lenient pacing delivered via songs that -despite having dynamic shifts between them- are consistently paced, with no ambient cuts followed directly by breakneck thrashing riffs or any other mental acrobatics, the songs are gentle in length, extremely gripping in their songwriting, coming to deliver their unique lethal punches and then vanishing before you get the chance to get too comfortable, making for a listen that kept me engaged throughout, and for songs that are almost always brilliant in one way or another.
Among Beautiful Lies’s many highlights that consistently populate the alternative rock and grunge spheres is the starter ‘Ghost’. In spite of not being one of my favorites, ‘Ghost’ does a fantastic job introducing Eric Sleeper as a rock musician first and foremost, paving the way for the album’s many forays into psychedelic, country, and indie territories to be seen in the correct light. It is worth mentioning that the unadulterated rock tendencies of ‘Ghost’ do not happen again throughout the until its penultimate offering ‘Run!’. A song that displays Sleeper’s rock affinity, ‘Ghost’ also introduces him as a capable and inventive guitarist. The introduction is raw and bold with curious and hard hitting riffs mirrored on the bass, and a thrilling hook that features a whole vocal ensemble wailing. The song gets elevated after the first hook with the introduction of a guitar line that will become one of the album’s quirkiest and most memorable. While there are songs on the album that I personally enjoy more, there is no denying that ‘Ghost’ is a fantastic and saturated introduction to the sound of Eric Sleeper.
‘Killer Eyes’ introduced a Guster-esque side to Eric Sleeper’s music. A simple, short, and emotionally charged song, the song features a 2-chord seesaw motion almost all the way through, making for a soothing experience. It is great to witness how Sleeper consistently manages to elevate his songs with the introduction of a secondary, colorful guitar line that improves the balance with a counter melody or a distinctive tone that manages to add something to the arrangement. ‘Killer Eyes’ is a great introduction to Eric Sleeper’s grunge sound. ‘Lotto’ is another fantastically paced song that utilizes lighter overdrive and a deep groove to deliver one the album’s most lethal punches. A terrific riff that is more about strumming than chugging, there’s an elegant broodiness to ‘Lotto’ that makes it so repeatable. Sleeper’s understated vocals particularly shine on this song’s restrained and chained feel. An addictive song with an unforgettable atmosphere.
‘Midnight Robber’ starts with an intense riff and beat combo that sets the tone for a bold and loud rock song which then evolves into a punk rock banger with a distinctive pop flair running underneath. The addictive groove is one of the album’s busiest and heaviest, and the gorgeous wailing melody that counters the main riff introduces so much character to the sound, and depth to the arrangement. Another superb offering. Song 7 ‘Burn’ is another standout throughout the album. With its skeletal and clean riff that gets accentuated with a deep distorted rhythm line that grows on the arrangement until it takes hold in the chorus, ‘Burn’ is a song that strays from the formula that the rest of the album sets for itself. Also with the heavy riffs taking a back foot, ‘Burn’ was a great time to truly enjoy and celebrate the bass m on the album. Just listen to the juicy tone on ‘Burn’ and your appreciation for the role of bass on those songs will greatly increase. ‘What You Do To Me’, the album closer, gave me Destroyer vibes with its expansive atmospheres and twirly flanging effect on the main rhythm line. The guitar counterpoints are great as always, managing again to add so much depth to the mix with minimal effort.
It is essential to mention that those 10 freakishly tight and well made songs were written, recorded, and mixed basically just by Sleeper in his bedroom, perhaps showcasing his dedication or his raw talent, or maybe both. It is also a display of one the under-appreciated aspects of technology in today’s world and how it has become very accessible for anybody to dive deeper into their crafts or hobbies and manage to produce things that sound, look, or feel truly special. Beautiful Lies is a deceptively complex album of well written little gems. Seriously, not one song managed to prepare me for the next one, yet I was never surprised or taken by shock, merely amused and intently focusing on the sounds, the riffs, the flows of the sounds into one another, and just generally very much enjoying my time.
