Annabel

"Each and Everyone" CD

Count Your Lucky Stars

Genre: indie rock

Kent, OH

October 2009

With the spirit of No Knife and Modest Mouse burning brightly within their hearts, the three guys behind Annabel play melodic indie rock that will transport you back to 1999. These folks have the hooks and the urgency down, even if their music is on the generic end of things. Consider the Casket Lottery-esque opener, with its juicy guitar chords, sober vocals, and subtle strings; not too shabby, though will you remember it a month from now?

I don't want to give you the wrong impression, however. Annabel is not a bad band, although they are a reasonably young one, and that fact is fairly apparent here. In what may be a product of the band's insular lives - they grew up and remain in Kent, Ohio - this record is too focused in one spot, too homogeneous and perhaps too faithful to its influences. Though Each and Everyone has its share of strong songs - among them the No Knife carbon-copy "Adventures..." and shimmering "Castles in the Air" (dig the bells) - I can't shake the feeling that I've heard this disc before. For fans of the bands mentioned above, this record could suffice famously; however, Annabel aren't going to captivate the music scene's attention until the mix things up a tad.

annabel's myspace

Michael Tau

[Vitals: 11 tracks, distributed by the label, released March 3, 2009]