With ‘Gilded Echoes’, Scotland’s Silver Dollar Room released one of the best albums of 2024. The band’s sound wasn’t particularly groundbreaking, but they clearly recognised the value of taking influences and using them very effectively. With strong call backs to Bush, an influence from early Smashing Pumpkins, and nods melodic post-grungers like Moist, the material adopted a solid sound throughout, and with the aid of various thoughtful lyrics – often touching on themes of mental health – a familiar sound still had a great relevance at the time of release.
Second albums are notoriously tricky beasts, since the creation of new material isn’t always afforded the same luxury of time, but parts of ‘It Can’t Rain All The Time’ are just as strong. Opening the record, ‘Normal People’ kicks off with a drum sound that’s absolutely huge, signifying a massive rocker on the horizon. However, the opening riff takes on more of a heavy indie vibe than expected, and its only with the the arrival of John Keenan’s vocal that things take on a distinctly Silver Dollar tone. He’s in great voice – the performance here is every bit the equal of his finest moments on the debut; whether he’s in full rock croon or reaching for a few high toned woo’s, everything is pitched brilliantly. The marriage of his voice and Jamie Turnbull’s guitar on a melodic chorus taps into a classic post grunge sound, and although the arrangement sticks firmly to a slightly mournful mid tempo, everything works even though a slightly perkier number might have been more effective in grabbing the first time listener.
‘Come Morning’ opens in a similarly thoughtful way, this time making a feature of a bright guitar tone. The bulk of the number then taps into a classic post-grunge sound with an incessant energy. The track’s core riff hits with immediate effect, with a shrill sounding guitar battling against an impressively busy drum part, and even when the vocal arrives, there’s no let up. In lesser hands, things could sound cluttered, but this sounds more than assured, and Keenan’s vocal calls above the heavy edge with a real clarity. With the help of a typically positive lyric and an absolute ripper of a guitar solo featuring Turnbull in more of an old-school mode, this is a well rounded rocker that fans will really enjoy. In terms of album sequencing, this does a lot of heavy lifting after the more downbeat ‘Normal People’, quickly suggesting there’ll be other great, punchy numbers just over the horizon. And sure enough, ‘Breathe’ follows swiftly, sharing one of the band’s busiest sounding rockers to date. Centring, at first, around a groove laden drum part, Douglas McDonald attacks his kit like he’s modelled his performance on a couple of old Fugazi numbers, but once the rhythm settles, heavy post-grunge guitar lines introduce more of a recognisable sound. Armed with a fiery vocal, John K brings as much force to a great track, but in this instance, he’s not quite a match for the impressive musical backdrop. With twin guitars (one high toned, the other dirty sounding) weaving in and out of the drums for the bulk of the track, and a hugely melodic pre-chorus introducing more of a ‘Roll The Bones’ era Rush influence, the arrangement here is truly impressive: the sound of a rock band reaching peak confidence; taking the sound of their debut and adding a couple more complex layers, giving everything an effective lift, but without drawing too much away from the heart of the song.
Those who love a big rock ballad should make a beeline for ‘Crazy Heart’, a slow and brooding number given pride of place as the album’s centrepiece. The slow tempo allows for a warm bassline to cut through, whilst bright sounding lead guitars lay a mellow riff over a melody that presents itself very gradually. Cranking the guitars for the chorus, there’s an effective juxtaposition between a grubby riff and falsetto vocal, and a little later, a slow, bluesy solo takes centre stage, showcasing a perfect blend of power and melody. Moving into the number’s noisier climax, the drums spring into life, and although John’s vocal continues to provide a strong link with the rest of the material, the influence from early Pearl Jam here is very appealing. Mature and overly familiar, yet somehow still fresh sounding in a contemporary setting, this joins ‘Breathe’ as one of this record’s essential listens.
Elsewhere, John’s best Vedder-esque vocal tops a very 90s jangle on ‘Broken’ – a number that, at first, makes SDR sound like Moist colliding with a moody Toad The Wet Sprocket jam, for more late 90s goodness. Although the mid tempo approach taken here doesn’t help to summon immediate excitement, everything is well played, and McDonald’s shuffling drum part keeps everything buoyant until a heavy riff kicks in at the mid point. With a touch of Stiltskin colouring the sound, the main riff, again, feels like something from the 90s, but an enthused lead guitar break with more of an 80s tone helps to sell the band’s melodic credentials. The title track, meanwhile, sees the band sticking within a safe zone on a mid tempo grunger. As is often the case, though, nothing is as simple as first impressions suggest. A buoyant melody driving a great chorus gives John plenty to work with, and the extended instrumental break finds Douglas attacking with some really sharp rhythms whilst guitarists Jamie Turnbull and Jennifer Bain add a world of superb sounding musical layers. A few plays in, and this actually starts to sound like one of the album’s stronger tracks.
The band’s earlier single ‘Monsters’ is also reprised here and stands as one of their most powerful offerings, both musically and lyrically. The track’s opening rhythm guitar salvo calls back to 90s emo with strong echoes of Shift within the tone. This catches the ear with immediate effect and from there,‘Monsters’ grows into something huge; a tune that moves between a few very distinctly different musical passages, eventually peaking with an epic instrumental break, showcasing some of the band’s heaviest sounds to date.
Throughout the first verse, occasional power chords join a huge, rhythmic drum part, presenting a very different 90s sound with elements of post grunge bristling against a world of melodic rock elements. This gives vocalist John plenty to work with, but it’s when hitting the chorus that this recently formed new line up of SDR really springs into life. The dual guitars drive a great riff, and despite only sharing a simple hook, Keenan’s voice sounds great when reaching for full cry. Listening a little more closely, ‘Monsters’ is elevated way beyond being a rocky throwback, thanks to Jennifer’s fantastic ringing guitar tones on a couple of strong bridge sections, and the aforementioned instrumental break makes a great feature of a more downtuned approach where a riff that falls somewhere between the heavy end of early Smashing Pumpkins and ‘Black Album’ era Metallica is augmented by a very natural but rather forceful lead guitar break. Perhaps most importantly, ‘Monsters’ gives the Silver Dollar Room audience something far beyond feel good rock fare by choosing to share a harrowing and pointed lyric inspired by a true life child abuse case. The band have always been known for their sophisticated lyrical approach with songs tackling various social topics, but this is arguably the first time their social commentary has ventured anywhere so bleak. It’s not handled in a way that would feel off-putting, however; the intent here is never to deliver something with easy shock value. While it certainly should be argued that the chosen topic isn’t about entertainment in its truest sense, the whole package here is superb. ‘Monsters’ may be harsh, but it takes the Scottish band to the next level, both musically and lyrically.
There are a couple of tracks here that don’t feel quite so immediate as the lion’s share of ‘Gilded Echoes’, but fans will certainly love this album. It continues an impressive musical journey for Silver Dollar Room, and at its very best – with ‘Breathe’, ‘Monsters’, and ‘Crazy Heart’ forming an essential trio of tunes – it’s the kind of record that showcases a band who don’t just enjoy what they do – they really feel their music. A recommended listen.
August 2025
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