so this is all college

all college stuff..well mostly..some stuff maybe post-college by a few months.

sometimes i think a bout how

well it's not really that embarassing. i just used too many big words and took myself too seriously.

The Sea Scouts' album 'Beacon of Hope' is a culmination of the effort spent by the distinctly Australian youth of Hobart, Tasmania. The band consists of a steady bassist and guitarist, with a rotating drummer. Although the band itself is small, it embodies an accompanying intellectual, emotional and social movement. Its surging, tribal rhythm washes away any fear or misgivings, smothering panic with a deep, distorted embrace. The vocals are very low in the mix and are mostly unintelligible but the bassist's and guitarist's dual vocal efforts pierce through the thick sound. The Australian trio's raw feeling revitalizes the punk rock aesthetic as a very local, communal entity. The music entices a much wider array of thought and emotion than traditional punk rock. Instead of recoiling in anger and fear from the horrifying, bleak sides of life, they protect what they value and love about humanity despite the darker aspects of our existence. There is an urgent anti-establishment tone to their music; one of their early songs was titled 'Destroy Your Local McDonald's'. However, their music developed into a more subtle art over the years. Their songs develop from improvisation rather than structures or classical rules. Despite this bent, the resulting music not only attacks materialism and globalization but it presents the band's unique sense of beauty, no matter how frail and damaged by modern life it may be.


Starting from a bare-bones creative ability and vision has its drawbacks, but the Sea Scouts proved sufficiently determined to express themselves and their perspective. They hailed from a part of the world where the Winter was a strong force in their lives, and it doesn't let up until it is done. In this isolation, the youth community built their own nest to shelter themselves from the cold and the creative languor of society as a whole. Without anyone to define what is 'correct' in music, they set out to create their own sonic landscape. The Sea Scouts started out very raw, but as they progressed their sound took shape into something much more touching.


Rhythm and texture came naturally to the Sea Scouts. The band was a three-piece, so there was no room for anything but the occasional accompaniment. Their sound was minimal but envelops a huge spectrum of emotion. Self-described as primarily a live band, the impact of a small-concert setting with these three can only be imagined. The songs rise and fall, ignoring conventions for the most part. This can be a little hard to follow at first for people who are accustomed to verse-chorus-verse structures, but anyone who opens themselves up to the music will get something out of it. The Sea Scouts may have been isolated geographically but their musical ideals encompass all of humanity.

(here's where I wander off a little bit: I think this is very important but I need to work on it more before it really makes sense.)

As the band is further revealed, contradictions arise. The Sea Scouts are very adamant about not setting up boundaries and are brutally honest through their music, but they also show feelings of fear and isolation from others. They use imagery of the Aboriginies, who in their artistic interpretations look almost like aliens, to express their feelings of separation from society as a whole. These seemingly contradictory messages are a key to their perspective, or that of anyone who has ever felt alienZ´Sø1flr=oÛL‰_†BlÏBíòG†'vï^t"@ãAYÀ”ÑgPmåap¥2k¬≤y¿p¢®*ø„È;?÷Xf†)(∆ÙI≈—YÌXm6≈‡Æ´Ë¿&ìY£)—M&‹Råù˜