If you go to the dedicated website for The Idle Quiet you will discover the intention is there, plans are afoot but the site is still, very much, under construction…
The same could not be said of their music; Idle Quiet know who their influences are and the bands they wish to emulate. Idle Quiet are assuredly as American as apple pie. The apples, however, are quintessentially British.
This band is rightly proud of the Americana sound they have cultivated. Although, the sound is steeped in a genre some would dismiss as AOR or Middle of the Road. Unfair. This band is no middle-lane makeweights; you have to admire their unapologetic sense of purpose. There are strains of Tom Petty (just listen to the intro), The Eagles and Counting Crows by their own admittance, with a vocal lead which would prompt a double-take from Sussana Hoffs; especially when vocalist Beth Houghton hits the low hanging fruit out of the ball park with her vocal range.
The premise of the single highlights a siren with bewitching looks from the perspective of a presumed rival (?). The lyrics of Lights Are On are peppered with Americanisms. The line “Wish I had that swing in my backyard” employs poetic imagery. The line, “she ain’t nothing but a 10 cent postcard” is damning – not only cheap and disposable – but also a glossy & photo-shopped “show pony”. The title and throwaway Yank phrase “Lights are on but there is nobody at home” trumps the temptress’s looks and underlines the character’s stupidity. The phrase may have its origin in the good ole USA, however, the insult is as English as a Cox’s Pippin. The Cox’s Pippin is renowned for its crispness and juiciness but with an evolving taste which mellows with age; much like the qualities of the first single from The Idle Quiet: “Lights are on”
By: The Swilgate Scuttler