Sleepy Rebels - World Record

If you haven't heard Sleepy Rebels, you're in for a kaleidoscopic sound treat. Brother (Bruce Driscoll) and sister (Erica Driscoll) vocal duo of New York-based alternative pop group Blondfire joined Jeremy Adelman, founder of indie label Powerful Company. The result was World Record – an acoustic/classic/electro-pop debut album with a folky feel. This 12-track record will thrill Indie, alternative and classical music lovers and surprise the rest.

Rooted in electro-pop, and rock music, the trio’s sound is spiced up with unexpected combinations of classical (violins, cello, viola, and piano), antique musical instruments (ocarina and celeste), and playful percussion (a loud tambourine, numerous hand claps and Bruce’s “pam pa-dums”).

World Record’s main theme is reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland, with its wanderlust for flying, mystery, and discovering love and life. It’s a deja-vu of the Beatles’ feel-good songs. “She Became the Sun” and “Expect the Unexpected” are reminiscent of Lennon’s slow-paced, acoustic-driven “Oh My Love.” Bruce interprets the two songs in soft tones, accompanied by the antique sounds of ocarina and celeste and the wistful tenor of a cello.

The group’s catchy tune with simple, happy-go-lucky lyrics "Magic Girl" is similar to Lennon’s cheeringly syncopated “Oh, Yoko.” “I didn't know that life could be this good/…You're such a magic girl.” But Bruce’s chameleonic voice also sounds like The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas’ occasionally drowsy interpretations, on “Dreaming You.” 

With a fairy-like elegance, Erica Driscoll interprets the soothingly mesmerizing "Looking Glass." It’s reminiscent of the romantic purity in Sixpence None The Richer's “Breathe Your Name.” Meanwhile, the remix of "Unbelievable" has the 1990s electronic, yet fluid sound of The Cardigans' "Erase/ Rewind."

Listening to the Rebels will open a wonderland of sounds, a “twisting kaleidoscope,/ of things you never dreamed you'd be there seeing.” With this group, expect the unexpected.


Sleepy Rebels - "Magic Girl"