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Cheryl Waters Music Reviews



Here's what the critics have to say about San Francisco band Swell:

"...whatever it is, Swell does it like nobody else." (Option Magazine)

"Like all Swell albums, you dont think its going to be able to match their previous achievements. Like all Swell albums, it might just turn out to be their best yet."It's the kind of music that makes you sing along without knowing any of the words, and they're the only band I now that are liked by everyone who hears them." (Bikini Magazine)

"Swell is an excellent band that excels at not getting the notice they deserve...Well? [their 2nd album] is one of the best rock albums of the 90s." (New York Post)

"Some bands just make records -- Swell create masterpieces." (Melody Maker)

Swell does indeed create masterpieces -- exquisite, moody songs oozing with intelligent, dark humor set upon a simple background of acoustic guitars, sparse, yet powerful, drumming overlayed with deadpan vocals.

Formed in the late 80s, Swell has had a steady flow of guitarists and drummers revolving around its core members, songwriter/guitarist/vocalist David Freel and bassist Monte Vallier. They've been through a lot since
they released their first album (Swell, 1990) on their own label, Psycho-Specific -- signing to a major label (American), getting dropped, then getting picked up by a well-respected indepedent label (Beggars
Banquet). Throughout it all, Swell has managed to retain both its unique sound and, more importantly, its dignity by maintaining control over pretty much every aspect of the band including producing, recording and mixing the music -- something many bands start out wanting to do but somehow lose along the way.

Swell is a band that is not willing to compromise. Our reward? For All the Beautiful People. An album replete with beautiful, haunting songs that are full of texture. They juxtapose acoustic and electric guitars and intensify the sound with distinctive drumming, infectious melodies and Freel's poetic dry wit and clever turns of a phrase.



Swell has been churning out lazy, hazy, downbeat love songs disguised as pop gems since its debut self-titled album in 1990. The band hit its stride in 1994 with 41- a collection of vaguely mysterious and bittersweet lullabies. Swell’s acoustic driven setup glides beneath David Freel’s lovelorn voice. The music is simple: basic chords strummed lightly with booming drums and rolling bass lines. It’s rare that I find myself so happy to be so depressed, but this music drags you down with it willingly. Swell rides a fine line balancing tension and menace with such a quiet, laid back style.

For All The Beautiful People opens with “Today” an uncharacteristically rocking song that incorporates moody samples and a sinister chorus. Female back-up vocals don't take away from the aggressiveness of “Make Up Your Mind”, but rather add a weird dynamic to the song’s already combative feel. Organs and horns occasionally sneak their way into the mix surprisingly without clogging up the sparseness of the band’s sound. Freel’s tone is resigned; he’s content to wallow in the aftermath of his own bad luck and broken relationships. It’s almost as though he'd prefer it that way.

Swell sounds vaguely like a morose version of the Violent Femmes without the gimmicky sing along melodies. The band’s mordant humor permeates all of its albums, none of which have broken out of the underground. Almost a decade on, the band remains a well-kept secret. Hopefully, For All The beautiful People will change that.


Post Chrissie Guide To Rock


I can't get enough of Swell. Listen to them once a week. Why doesn't everyone else? Melodic, quiet, slow, moody, loud. Definitely something for everyone. If you haven't heard of Swell...go buy their records! Maybe try Too Many Days Without Thinking first...learn to love them...then complete your collection with the first albums and this one. I do actually listen to Swell once a week. I make no apologies. Stop taking you promo copies into second hand stores to trade please!

- Brett F.

Bought this on account of Brett’s whining. Okay, okay, so that’s not neccessarily true. I heard about half of the album on Static and Amplifier and I was mightily impressed. ‘Everything is Good’ [the first single] should have been h-u-g-e because it certainly is a killer song. When they played a b-side off the second single on Static, [a Stones cover no less], they described Swell as having a “stoned rock” sound, and I think this sums it up rather aptly. Maybe not the thing to have playing on yr car stereo when the officers ask you to walk in a straight line. :)




Acoustic Indie Rock

The joke of the title to the San Francisco trio's second CD is emphasized by the man flippin' the bird on the back cover. It screams, "Stay away indie trendoids coz this is the real thing". I agree. This is probably too challenging for those who fawn over slacker indie heroes such as Pavement. Swell's twelve songs invoke a mood that suggests they were born and raised in Britain. Elements of everyone from Spiritualized to Close Lobsters to a dash of Wire are found embedded in these songs. Songs aren't so much singles as they are interconnected vital organs for the body of the whole album. Rather than focus on loud guitars or keyboard beats and sounds, they stay acoustic, which allows everything to feel organic and eliminates layers of production so you can listen to the whole record and get attached to it immediately.

- JF Parnell
Reviewed on 16 NOVEMBER 1998





While I haven't personally met many Swell fans, they all seem to be overly infatuated with the band. With their latest release on Beggars Banquet, Swell has made me "see the light" as well. While Swell's musical roots are firmly planted in a droning, mildly psychedelic, pop-soaked contingent, the esoteric lyrics and quirky guitar noises conveniently provide a distinct peculiarity that places Swell out of the realm of the countless thousands of other blase bands that vomit up monotonous music each day. The backwards guitar of the opening track, "Today" gives a music-induced cranial massage as dreamy words effortlessly float from the speakers into your ears and wrap themselves around your brain. Keeping Swell's distinct sense of smarmy sarcasm intact, "I Hate Christmas" provides more eerie tones to what would seem only to be a quick instrumental. Following immediately after it is "Off In My Head" which adequately expresses what For All the Beautiful People is really all about: aimless wandering that actually results in an ultimate destination. Swell combines an off kilter time signature, bleeping tones and wispy vocals into musical mayhem with merit. Ready to discover a great band that's already made four albums? Check out Swell and indoctrinate yourself.

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