The Silver Snails
Speed of Light
Snailform Records
At their core, Silver Snails are the husband-and-wife duo of Lucas Ward and Elisa Fantini. Their home base is in Romagna, Italy, with an outpost in Portland, Oregon. Their second album, Speed of Light was meticulously assembled over a 10-year period in Italian and American studios. They state their mission as opening human hearts through song, and they describe themselves as a glam-rock space-pop family band.
The songs on Speed of Light are lovingly constructed pop songs that remind me of later period XTC. The band has a fine command of song structure, and Fantinini and Ward are able musicians. It strikes me that the long gestation period may have led the band to over-polish their songs. I think they would benefit if there was a little more space in the mix to allow the songs to breathe. That said, it sounds good on headphones.
As befits a multinational band, the songs are presented in both English and Italian. “A Flagrant Display of Magic” comes on with a full choir vocal sounding like liturgical music for Jedi, and ends with a swelling guitar solo. “Faro de Amore” is a love song that starts out in English and ends with the final chorus in Italian. “Gioia” opens with the sound of children laughing before moving into a bouncy verse (in Italian). Overall, Speed of Light reminds me of pop/prog projects like Asia.
One song stands out a bit awkwardly. The Silver Snails version of the Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star” is very faithful to the original, which contrasts with the originals on Speed of Light and breaks the flow of the album somewhat. “Video” is all about big hooks, while the band’s original songs are built on atmosphere and texture. The video for “Video Killed the Radio Star” is a fun romp, though, through Sci-Fi references from Star Trek to Star Wars.
