Bern & The Brights’ latest EP, Work, certainly displays a phenomenal amount of talent and character from the get-go. Although it’s hard to place them into a box—and why would anyone want to do that to begin with?—they pick and choose a little bit of the best from various genres. A reggae vibe appears in the first number on the release, “Slave Driver,” and not incredibly far into the future, there’s a swinging feeling brought onto Work as “I See Red” steals the spotlight for the time being. Despite the first couple of tracks having a very light, fun and dancey flow, “Sick Of Seeing You” jabs at a wrongdoer in a way that would put Tegan And Sara to shame. The percussion-heavy track should be one of those essential numbers for anyone trying to get over someone who caused them any sort of pain.
Work just throws one toe-tapping, feet-moving catchy number after number out, making the seven-song release easy to listen to multiple times without it getting old. The quartet spice each song up with various sound effects and crowd pleasers, such as lasers and the kick drum in “War & Games,” which will make you want to clap your hands and perhaps stomp your feet. The incredibly fun and observant “As Long As I’m Alive” starts to wind down Work with a bit more of a folky feel compared to the other songs on the release. Finally, “Thieves, Creeps And Automatons” puts an end to this Work day with a slick harmonica section that’s to die for. The only complaint that Work draws is that it’s short and the hunger for more just grows with each listen.
In A Word: Fresh
