The Rogers Sisters

The Loyola Phoenix - Invisisble Deck Review - 04/12/06

We are post-punk family
Rogers Sisters’ new disc uneven but fun

Not unlike their NYC neighbors The Strokes and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Rogers Sisters are young, rockin’, hip and out with a polished new album. What’s more, all of these bands are currently teetering on the line between maturity and over-production, with critics either appreciative of the artistic maturation or unforgiving of fine-tuning that drowns out the bands’ original, distinctive and best-loved qualities.

On their third full-length, “The Invisible Deck,” garage-rockers The Rogers Sisters advance from their earlier amateur lo-fi sound to one with more defined post-punk rhythms and fuzzy no-wave riffs, trading the older, inventive songwriting seen on past records for simpler song structures. �

The record blasts off with the catchy “Why Won’t You?,” a swelling rock anthem that captures the Sisters at their most energetic, with real-life siblings Jennifer (vocals, guitar) and Laura (drums, backing vocals) Rogers as well as unrelated, non-female “sister” Miyuki Furtado (vocals, bass) caught up in the manic pace of “Why won’t you wait?/ Don’t want to wait/ Why won’t you listen?/ Go ahead and speak.”

Proving themselves a more happy-go-lucky version of noise-rock outfit Death From Above 1979, The Rogers Sisters offset their inflexibly sugary vocals with harsh, twitchy guitars and thumping drums to achieve a harder feel. As the album progresses, some members’ strong suits become more apparent: Furtado’s passionate cry makes him a more compelling vocalist than Jennifer, whose whiny tones tend to break starkly into otherwise dynamic rock numbers. When Laura is paired with her sister on backing vocals, however, the result is more solid, sounding like a refined incarnation of the Pixies’ Kim Deal. �

The gears switch on the slower “Your Littlest World,” when listeners are exposed to the Sisters’ dark side: a shoegazey, hypnotic guitar soundscape accompanied by trembling flute and welcomingly subdued vocals. The Sisters further extend their musical style with the driving “You Undecided,” incorporating the noisy fuzz popularized by noise-punk legends Sonic Youth, while adding a cluster of intensely whispered lines and more diverse percussion (including a cowbell) at its full, electrifying climax.�

And yet, there’s a catch to all this praise. The Rogers Sisters need reminding that simplicity doesn’t always equal listenability. Unlike a naturally outstanding album that becomes more lovable with time, “The Invisible Deck” begins to wear out after a handful of listens. The ultimate weakness seen over the course of the album is the pattern of repetition – of riffs, chords, beats and vocals. This is clear on “Money Matters,” with its looping of the opening guitar phrase from Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” and it is even more apparent on the last track, “Sooner or Later.” This unnecessarily long, eight-minute song has a single, recurring vocal melody, an unchanging drum beat and mostly static bass and guitar lines, a repetitiveness that can prompt disinterest.

If this were The Rogers Sisters’ debut, it could be said that they should step outside of their “box” in the future. In light of the oversimplification on “The Invisible Hand,” however, perhaps they need to go back – not to a box, but to a more innovative, interesting style of songwriting.�

Even so, The Rogers Sisters do not lack talent, nor should they be ignored. There is some unnecessary – and thus undesirable – repetition, but these garage-rockers are most definitely successful at transforming their energy into fun, catchy rock tunes. Besides, there’s got to be some reason why the band has been privileged enough to play with such post-punk greats (and major Rogers Sisters influences) as ESG, The Fall and Mission of Burma, as well as respected younger acts such as Interpol, The Gossip and, of course, those fellow hip New Yorkers The Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

By Karin Fjellman
The Loyola Phoenix