Under Review

The Backhomes

Only Friend (Shake! Records)

Review by Mariko Adams

It is hard to believe that The Backhomes consists of just two members. Kees Dekker and Aimée van Drimmelen’s Only Friend is the Victoria-based duo’s promising debut album that puts an energetic twist on dreamy psych-pop. Listening to Only Friend feels as organic and exciting as a live show, yet it is clear that Dekker and van Drimmelen have put careful thought into every single one of the album’s fuzzy reverberating tracks.

What is impressive about Only Friend is that Dekker and van Drimmelen have crafted a sound distinctive to The Backhomes. While their sound is unique, it is also flexible, as their album effortlessly ebbs and flows between raucous romps like “You Gotta Move” to more subdued psychedelic numbers like “Changing Me.” On the album’s highlight, “Tear It Up,” Dekker sings “I’m gonna tear it up / I’m gonna scream and shout” and what not only this song but also the album as a whole demonstrate is that The Backhomes are not to be ignored.