The Sandwitches: Mrs. Jones’ Cookies

The Sandwitches: Mrs. Jones’ Cookies
In a lot of ways, The Sandwitches seemed to just appear out of nowhere with their 2009 debut, How to Make Ambient Sad Cake. The all female trio emerged from San Francisco with a psychedelic pop song that was so retro it seemed new. The band returns with their sophomore album, Mrs. Jones’ Cookies and a new twist on their sound.
In 2009, “Back to the Sea” was one of my singles of the year. The track had a poppy innocents that sounded like an all-female Beach Boys. Mrs. Jones’ Cookies has a decidedly less innocent feel to it. The album instead seemingly replaces the innocence with something slightly more sinister. Tracks like “Black Rider” seem to mix the snaky guitar lines of The Doors with the tribal vocal-lines of Pocahaunted.
What seems to be completely absent from this sound is the poppiness that once made the band so great. The album’s lead single “Summer of Love” is the only song that has that vintage Sandwitches feel. The track features dueling female vocals over surf guitar arpeggios. Although the song still is not quite as good as “Back to the Sea”, it is the closest listeners get on Mrs. Jones’ Cookies.
The album is a difficult listen for sure but even after wading through moody rockabilly and dissonant ambient rock there never feels like there is enough of a pay off. The tracks end up being mediocre and not worth the trouble of listening to the meandering howling that is necessary to get to the real meat of the song.
Rating: 4.3/10
MP3: The Sandwitches “Summer of Love”
Buy: iTunes or Amazon