Venus Milo - Thanks & Apologies

Venus Milo

Thanks & Apologies
self-released; 2016

3.7 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

Venus Milo is a young band from Virginia that formed in 2015 and already have a good list of accomplishments under their belt. They started with playing house shows, moved on to venues and also managed to release an album entitled Thanks & Apologies. Their music is very easy on the ears and fits into what many might call indie pop. You can make slight comparisons to bands like Local Natives and Real Estate. That being said I felt a bit of a jam band sound from them.

​The band prefers clean guitars over distortion allowing the music to have a lot of space. They created a cohesive sound on this album giving them a good foundation to build from. One thing that could use some improvements was the recording quality. The lead vocals were sometimes sitting on top of the mix and I felt the low-end could have been more defined. 

They open up with one the highlights entitled “Goodbye Ike.” The best part about the song was the groove. I really enjoyed the guitar riff. The bassist is unassuming but has some great fills throughout. The singing is solid and the vocal harmonies seemed to be the sweet spot. 

Up next is “Abbey Sounds” which is another solid track. The slick groove was the thing that drew me to the song. I also thought the vocals sat better in the mix on this track. “Cauliflower Melon” is one of the more dynamic songs. Lyrically, the song seems to revolve around a breakup. My favorite line was “You taught me to sing in harmonies this is my thanks and apology for not being able to stick around for you.”

The band gets funky with “Nicotine.” I really enjoyed the contemporary topic the band tackles on “Rockstar.” He sings, “Am I real or am I a meme? A personality through your computer screen? I know my problems ain't goin' nowhere, I'm tired of being alone in a world that doesn't care.” It also one of the catchiest songs with some unexpected slap bass. “Knowbody” moves about at a slower pace and “3:59, Solid!” is indeed a solid closer. 

The band still has room for improvements in a number of areas but I felt this album was a solid start. There are a handful of inspired moments on this album and I look forward to their evolution.

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