The Ettes

Look At Life Again Soon (Take Root)

By Leah Urbom
Published: September 1st, 2008 | 9:00am

The Ettes are Lindsay Hames (vocals, guitar), Maria Silver (drums, vocals), and Jeremy Cohen (bass, vocals); otherwise known as Coco, Poni, and Jem. Luckily for Coco and Poni (who began as an all-girl group with a rotating female bassist), Jem was more than happy to back the ladies up on a permanent level, but was quick to add his own intricacy to the Ettes’ sound. Their first album, Shake the Dust was put out in 2006 through Sympathy For the Record Industry, and Look At Life Again Soon was self-released in March, only to see the band scooped up by Take Root Records for re-release. This sophomore effort was written partially in North Carolina, partially in London, and produced by Liam Watson (White Stripes, Kills).

The Ettes' brand of beat punk offers a healthy dose of garage rock and a barrage of other ‘60s influences — including Patsy Cline and Nancy Sinatra — a blend that quickly garnered the group tour dates opening for such legends as the New York Dolls and the Go-Go’s, as well as more contemporary artists like the Black Keys. Coco’s voice is what eases the Ettes out of entirely punk-influenced territory; with her steady, sultry tone she moans lines like, “You’re bound to have / You’re born to lose / So call it a loss / If I go looking for you,” on “Chilled Hidebound Hearts.” The group balances their darker reverby rock (“Where Your Loyalties Lie,” “You Can’t Do That To Me”) with more dance-worthy carefree tracks (“Crown Of Age,” “I Heard Tell,” “Two Shakes”) to create an almost too-quickly-gone blast of head-bopping rocknroll: Little time, big impression.

According to Coco, the Ettes rather enjoy trivia nights, honky-tonkin’, beer, and cotton — so the group is currently holed up in their newly acquired “super secret house” in Nashville, plotting a third record tentatively titled Secret Basement and/or Shed Times. OK, so we may have to wait and see as far as the name is concerned, but — if Look At Life Again Soon is any indication — it’s pretty much guaranteed to rock.

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