Skinny Jean tread a fine line between theatricality and untrammelled pretentiousness on their debut Dolce Doggerel. Surely a band who title their songs ‘Amaying’, ‘Anhedonia’, ‘Anti0kie’ (ten of the 12 tunes start with A actually) and ‘Ecclesiastes’ have to be taking the piss, right? Even the seemingly high-brow album title is a dichotomy: it sounds fanciful and exclusive, but I’m pretty sure Dolce Doggerel means musical verse of little value. Sonically, the Brisbane quintet’s debut is a collusion of progressive song structures and a Broken Social Scene ensemble mentality. Throw in a rendition of an Afro-American spiritual song, references to Dostoyevsky and The Grapes of Wrath and a penchant for using pills as a Lego substitute, and what you get is an intriguing, at times disjointed, debut album.

That Afro-African spiritual song, ‘Good Morning’, demonstrates that Skinny Jean have balls the size of watermelons. Recorded like a 1920s Hokum song, this a cappella number could have backfired in extravagant fashion, but the group pull it off with aplomb. It’s indicative of the hubris displayed by Skinny Jean throughout Dolce Doggerel: they’re aware of their own musical skill and they’re willing to try anything, regardless of its success. Not many bands could play a song like ‘Ecclesiastes’ with its mix of glitch electronica, Mars Volta-esque scratchy guitar solos and choral vocals. But the band’s almost virtuosic skill can also be detrimental. ‘Anti0kie’ is a patchwork of technical riffs tied together with some grating yelping from vocalist Shem Allen.

This brand of ostentatious indie rock is endemic within the first half of Dolce Doggerel, but ‘Army Wife’ proves to be this record’s turnpike. The only song on the album to feature the soulful, beguiling Heidi Minchin on lead vocals, from here on in Skinny Jean pare back their flamboyant musical accoutrements and avant-garde breakdowns in favour of more solid songwriting. Tunes like ‘Alarm Heist’ and ‘Ape’ traffic in Drones-esque colonial rock’n’roll, while ‘Aliens’ is one of the strongest songs melodically on Dolce Doggerel without compromising the eccentric leanings.

While technically and musically the skill of Skinny Jean cannot be questioned, it’s a lack of focus that affects Dolce Doggerel. If you can wade through the pomp and bombast of the opening half of the record, you’ll find what happens when Skinny Jean opt for songwriting over showmanship. There’s a talented band here no doubt, but they need a bit more time to sculpt their sound.

by Dom Alessio