Rosa Alchemica – 3000 Miles 3000 Nights

Rosa Alchemica came to be when founding members Eddie Darko and Andreas Marian reconnected in London after both leaving their Estonian hometown – presumably in pursuit of dreams of grandeur.  Before long the group soon filled out with Kiwi Greg Gibson on drums and Rosa Alchemica’s sole English representative, Dave Phillips.  Over four years of touring and writing followed, with the group finally committing to something concrete in the form of their early 2010 debut, 3000 Miles 3000 Nights.

After listening to the twelve song full length, I don’t know how Rosa Alchemica existed for so long without recording something sooner.  3000 Miles is a tight record and fantastic showcase of the group’s knack for creating head-nodding, radio-friendly, indie tinged post-punk.  Their style might best be described as a combination of Strokes vocalist Julian Casablancas and the fuzzy but poppy execution found in recent indie phenomenon Wavves – only with considerably more elegance.  Sometimes they even carry a slight Smashing Pumpkins meets Radiohead vibe.

The album opens with “Spatial,” a track that wastes no time getting under the listeners’ skin.  Thanks to a slew of unyielding guitars and catchy riffs, my foot just wouldn’t stop shaking in time with the track’s infectious solos – a trend continuing well into the following track, “Now Then Always,” and beyond.  Carrying on, tracks like “Disappear Here” and “Close To My Heart” highlight the Wavves influence by placing a static-y damper on Darko’s vocals.  But while I’ve always found Wavves use of this technique entirely overpowering, Rosa Alchemica limit the effect to Darko’s vocals and maintain crisp instrumentation throughout.

While the majority of tracks on 3000 Miles fall into conventional categories, some, like “No One Here Loves You,” find the band flexing their experimental muscles.  The track in question involves disjointed chord progressions and accompanying riffs.  Yet for all of their unconventional choices their basic song structure maintains an underlying accessibility and easy appeal.

Overall, Rosa Alchemica has crafted a very pleasing debut.  3000 Miles is easy to get into and never wallows or degrades into an elitist “post-punk” project.  While more often than not the band tends to play it safe, 3000 Miles has just enough personality to attract the attention of casual indie goers while also satisfying those in the more die-hard underground.