This is an artist who deserves to be heard on her own terms.
I will start off by saying this is a surprisingly good album. We will just park that for a minute and deal with the inevitable ‘Nepo Baby’ comments first. There have always been those in music who have got a head start because of their parents. Does it matter? Well, yes and no. Yes, in that it is getting more and more expensive to get into and break through in music and it feels like a lot of working class voices are disappearing from the music scene right now, particularly in the UK. If it takes a chunk of money to buy and learn an instrument, then an average of six years after forming a band to break through to a level where you might be able to make a tenuous full-time living from it – then it is a damn sight easier for the well-to-do to get by when funded by the bank of Mum and Dad. No, in that however much of a head start if you haven’t got the skill and the talent maintaining a long-term career in music is highly unlikely. Gracie Abrams, Baxter Dury and Willow are three examples of the children of musicians, or entertainment industry types, who are all ploughing incredible careers for themselves regardless of how many doors their parent’s name helped to open.
Violet Grohl, for those living the life of a hermit in the Outer Hebrides, is the oldest daughter of Foo Fighter’s and Nirvana’s Dave Grohl. What influence has he had on Violet and her career? Well, he was one of the earliest to acknowledge she had a really good voice and gave her opportunities on stage to perform with his two bands. Beyond that, it seems he has done very little more than buying her instruments and a notebook to start writing song ideas down in, even making sure she finished her school education when she expressed a desire to drop out and start making music. Violet went as far to self-learn guitar and at this point Dave says she has taught him a trick or two. At the age of twenty she arrives on the scene with a name that she admits has opened doors for her, but to which she is more than ready to come storming through and seize the opportunity with both hands.
Be Sweet To Me is a really consistent listen, a cohesive album and a full body of work. The overall vibe is late 90’s grunge and alt-rock, perhaps Dad’s biggest impression on her music was simply what she grew up listening to. This is less Foo Fighters though and more Breeders mixed with a smidge of Hole. It was recorded at producer Justin Raisen’s house, who has previously worked with Kim Gordon. Grohl cites Pixies, PJ Harvey and Björk as other reference points.
The album comes on strong with ‘THUM’ and ‘595.’ ‘THUM’ is a quality, confident track. Grohl has written the tracks with Raisen, Anthony Paul Lopez (drummer and another Kim Gordon collaborator) and Brad Lauchert. After the heavy start stop riffage of ‘THUM’ and the darker ‘595,’ with its lyrics based upon a phone sex line t-shirt slogan, ‘Bug In The Cake’ actually succeeds in driving things even harder. The vocal performances are constantly on point. ‘Last Day I Loved You’ has the swagger of peak Sheryl Crow with a slightly heavier backing.
‘Big Memory’ and ‘Mobile Star’ are not quite as memorable, but things swiftly kick back into life with ‘Often Others.’ ‘Applefish’ slows it all down in a really effective manner. ‘Cool Buzz’ might be my favourite track. The opening back and forth guitar buzz is memorable, reminiscent of Heartworms’ album from last year. ‘Pool of My Dreams’ is a real LA track. Grohl shows the potential to muscle in on Lana Del Ray’s territory here.
However much cynicism and distrust you bring into this album the sheer quality is going to win you over. This is a really good debut album. Grohl looks set to enjoy a proper career in the music business and we are now an awful lot more excited about her appearance at Reading Festival this year than we previously were.
Essential Tracks: ‘THUM,’ ‘Bug In The Cake,’ ‘Last Day I Loved You,’ ‘Applefish’ and ‘Cool Buzz.’
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