saintface

The Pill

Few artists out in the massive modern pop wilderness inspire the Pill genesis quite like Saintface. If there was a post-Britpop movement, this New York City quartet would likely be the definitive mold. The band’s debut album, “Apartment Stories,” blends jubilant indiepop melodies and a confident backbeat swoon with tales of urban living, romantic frustrations and the endless nights of drinking at the corner pub, all from the heart of impeccable lyricist and master crooner Peter Riley. But this is more than a collection of double-entendres and witty anecdotes–these are their apartment stories, presented by four anglophilic blokes who raise a glass of red to timeless pop gems. There’s a genuine sparkle here, and Saintface smile upon us kindly. –Michael Marotta

Long Island Press

NYC has more than its share of ‘80s post-punk redux—some good, some bad and some just plain ugly. But while most are compared to The Cure and Joy Division, Saintface’s sound can’t help but conjure memories of The Smiths. Give them a minute, though, and get past that, because this band has so much more to offer. Emotionally soaked tunes of wine, women and song, excellently woven by Peter Riley and Co., will have you tapping your foot, nodding your head and swinging your beer. –Rich Callaghan

Whisperin and Hollerin (Ireland/UK)

Apartment Stories–9 out of 10 stars

Back in the mists of our early days circa ooh, late 2002/early 2003, the fledgling W&H received an EP from a promising NYC quintet called SAINTFACE. Unlike the then de-rigeur crop of Strokes-alikes oozing from the great city, they wrote songs full of wine, women and loss with an Anglophile bent and a widescreen sweep that was the antithesis of the angularity doing its omnipresent rounds. Whoa, we thought: here’s one to watch in the next 12 months or so.

And then…nothing. Apparently. Because the next thing we know almost three long years have gone by and there’s been no sign of Saintface until now, when they’ve re-appeared – apparently out of nowhere – with a debut album called “Apartment Stories” fuelled by even more of the wine, women and loss of the EP, not to mention side orders of temptation, lust and frustration and a heightened sense of the immediate, dramatic (Brit)pop they were threatening to specialise in.

So let’s get on the case at last. Saintface are based in New York and they are Peter Riley (vocals), David Blake (guitars), Joseph Babic (bass), Andy Elder (drums) and keyboard player Michael Parkin. Their album “Apartment Stories” may have taken an almost Stone Roses-style aeon to arrive in our lap, but by God, now it has it should be petted and treated with the utmost love and respect.

Just to remind us why we swooned over them to begin with, the songs from the “Hudson & Day” EP are again featured here. The title track is still the very epitome of dashing and debonair with a great, swelling chorus and a cooler than cool vocal from Riley. “Eight Days A Week”, meanwhile ISN’T anything to do with The Beatles, but it’s a majestic cruise of a song full of romantic longing, while the other song I was previously aware of (“New York’s Favourite Plaything”) showcases a harsher brooding side to Saintface: all fuzzed-up basslines and a dense atmosphere akin to The Smiths’ “Shoplifters Of The World Unite.”

But the great news is that there’s much more where these come from. The classic Britpop crunch of “A Few Kind Women” introduces Riley and co as the classiest young rakes about town, drowning their sorrows downtown while they chat up the best-looking waitresses around. Riley clearly has potential as a great crooner and while the likes of Neil Hannon, Jarvis Cocker and even El Moz do inevitably spring to mind, he has charisma to spare in his own right and the way he can build up a plot in a few simple, but well-turned phrases soon hooks you in. He does it to great effect on the ensuing “That Word Is Love” – a ridiculously immediate Smiths-cum-Motown affair – when he opens with “you’re moving to my town/ and all the birds start to sing again/ the leaves leap off the ground/ and all the bells start to ring again.” It doesn’t sound that remarkable on paper, but when allied with his persuasive croon and the band’s imploring rush it’s nigh on the perfect scene-setter.

He does it again to great effect on the exultant “Hand On My Heart” (opening couplet: “So much for that lazy summer/ that rented room where we’d read each other”) where his poor-boy-falls-for-rich-girl longing is swept along beautifully by the band’s intuitive playing and dominates the tempting, but somehow cautionary “There Is A Room” where it’s clear that playing the field leaves its emotional scratches as well as its notches on the bedpost.

Elsewhere, the band continue to prove their mettle with the Noel Gallagher-style guitar aggression of “Never Leave My Mind” and whip up a storm on the Pulp-style stomper that is “It Can’t Mean Much”, where Riley gives apparently short shrift to a love-sick buddy (“you’re still young and you could sell off your shares or something”). Arguably even better, though, are the suave and cinematic likes of “More Than I Love Love” and the show-stopping “You Belong To Me”: the inevitable, grand-piano drenched finale which features Riley’s finest vocal performance and a brace of last-gasp lyricism (“when the wolves are at your door/ and the fools are on TV/ the one thing you can know is you belong to me”) which ensures ‘epic weepie’ is stamped through the song like the best Blackpool rock.

“Apartment Stories”, then, is a debut with a twinkle in its eye, some surreptitious stains on its sheets and lasting scars on its heart. It might superficially suggest a hot and steamy affair, but it goes deeper the more you dally, and when Riley sings “we could meet each other somewhere more interesting than halfway” (“Hudson & Day”) you simply know Saintface are going to demand no less than total commitment in the future. Hook up and get dating without delay. –Tim Peacock

Whisperin and Hollerin Interview

In terms of suave, dashing Anglophile pop, you need look no further than New York City’s SAINTFACE, whose long-awaited debut album “Apartment Stories” is gearing up to be one of 2006’s very best long-players.

It’s been a long-time coming because the band had previously assailed us with their magnificent EP “Hudson & Day” back in 2003, but then since when have we been able to give genius a dig in the ribs at our convenience anyway and besides, the embarrassment of riches on “Apartment Stories” is enough to slake the thirst of even the most discerning of pop connoisseurs.

Naturally, W&H were keen to find out what had really happened in the interim between “Hudson & Day”, but the band’s charismatic frontman PETER RILEY was generous enough to fill us in on a whole lot more including a glimpse into his darker lyrical side and his tips on how to record a classic song directly after falling head first down a flight of stairs!

W&H: Peter, we were knocked out by the EP with “Hudson & Day” and “Eight Days AWeek” three years back, but what happened in the interim? Was it just the usual round of financial and industry-related hassles that caused such a gap between the releases or was it something more dramatic?

PETER: About a year after the “Hudson & Day” EP squirmed to life a local indie label asked us to record a full-length built around those songs, and we were well past the point of no return when the label went belly-up–as they do. So we blindly carried on, but the circumstances under which we made “Apartment Stories” were pretty threadbare and scattered–an awful lot of sessions in the wee hours of the morning, struggling to work with everyone’s divergent schedules, and it wound up taking much longer than expected. There was a further wait for the mastering engineer we hoped to work with–but when you’re told, “Sorry, she’s got the new Depeche Mode this week,” or, “You’ve been knocked back by Morrissey,” you learn to be patient, are driven to drink…or both.

W&H: Let’s get the inevitable one out of the way: virtually all reviews I’ve read of you (mine included) refer to the Anglophile/ ‘Britpop’ (delete as applicable) aspect of Saintface’s music, but it’s undeniable- to me at least – that you aren’t an obvious NYC-sounding band. Is this due to the music you listen to individually in the band and was the whole Britpop thing (Oasis, Blur, Pulp etc) important to you at the time?

PETER: As far as my own musical taste, it’s surely got an Anglophilic bent. Most of the band have similar inclinations, though everyone’s musical background is different–Andy was at one time a math-minded thrash-metal drummer and Dave grew up on classic American rock, and both those things lend our music a certain toughness. Joe’s a bit of a fetishist for forgotten glamrockers and mods. As a kid I was glued to Top 40 radio and when certain acts from the UK crossed over I was all ears–I wound up introducing Michael to The Smiths and he repaid the debt down the line by turning me on to Suede and Pulp. One review described us quite literally as “New Wave meets Britpop”, which suited me as it covered a good two decades of influences.

W&H: As an adjunct to this, New York has such a reputation for ‘angular’ rock bands with a lineage going from The Strokes back to Television and Talking Heads, and obviously there are thousands more from the city who have picked up the baton from those bands. Do you feel that, because you don’t fit in with all this, that you have been ignored somewhat?

PETER: We’ve never been a “New York band” in that jittery, wired sense–but with “Apartment Stories” we’re certainly engaging the overwhelming scope and romance of a place like New York…having it work on you more in a thematic, sweeping way than in the frantic, nervous scratchings that typify so much music from here. Life above the Lower East Side, believe it or not, exists. As far as being ignored, because we don’t fit that mold I do think we run the risk of being perceived as uncool–”the scene” tends to turn up its nose at melody, or a band that doesn’t spend its time on stage glaring at its shoes and furiously chopping away at eighth notes.

W&H: It’s probably a difficult one to answer, but how do you feel you are viewed by your NYC contemporaries these days? I’ve always assumed you’re a classic Manhattan band (the album sleeve alone would suggest so) but do you all actually live in Manhattan or are any of the band from over the Hudson?

PETER: Quite simply, I don’t think we are viewed by our contemporaries…! For the reasons I mentioned above, and also that we’ve been away from the fray for an extended stretch while knocking the album together. But we’re a competitive bunch and with the release of the record I think we’re keen to mix it up again, to stake our claim, whatever that means. Most of us at this point are Manhattanites, though one member of the group was born across the Hudson in New Jersey…but we’ll keep his identity secret, for obvious reasons. Manhattan’s where the bright lights are.

W&H: I love your vocals, but then I’m a sucker for crooners (and I mean that very much as a compliment) and – once again – I would tend to think of people like Jarvis Cocker, Neil Hannon and (occasionally) even Morrissey himself. Has there been anyone especially you feel has influenced the way you sing/ deliver your songs over the years?

PETER: I’m a fan of all three, though people tend to latch onto Morrissey immediately, and I’ve never dodged the influence. A pet peeve of mine are bands that deny they’re influenced by anyone–it would be fun to name names but I won’t–as if they sprung from the earth with virgin ears and arrived at their sound by divine providence. As in, “Who is this ‘Joy Division’ you keep mentioning?” The reality is that I grew up on a steady diet of Depeche Mode, who amounted to my own personal version of The Beatles, and Martin Gore was probably the biggest influence on my singing, and songwriting, for that matter. Scott Walker’s another favorite, and I hear him in the vocals of a lot of my favorites. These days, though, the guy is Richard Hawley. His voice is unbelievable, he makes you ashamed to open your mouth. Unless you’re eating. Or doing other things.

W&H: There’s one very Morrissey line on the album for me: the way you sing “You’re still young and you could sell some of your shares or something” on “It Can’t Mean Much”. I think that’s a great song because it’s a really sparky pop tune and I like it’s defiant, but slightly tongue-in-cheek tone. It also sounds very real. Without wanting to be too personal, I assume this is about someone you know?

PETER: It is, and if I tell you who I’ll be in very hot water. Suffice it to say it’s someone I grew up with who proceeded strictly according to plan and now has all the trappings of that life: wife, kids, house, two cars, lucrative job, and wonders why he’s utterly uninspired. It’s a bit of a childish jibe, I guess. To someone who spends every penny he earns simply to stay afloat his position doesn’t seem all that horrific, so the grass is always greener, as the cliche goes. But maybe the tune is meant as a bit of a humorous lifeline.

W&H: Again I’m supposing, but I would imagine that a certain percentage of your songs are at least semi-autobiographical? It’s hard to imagine Songs like “Eight Days A Week” and the lovely “More Than I Love Love” as anything other than straight from the heart…

PETER: They always begin that way, and maybe wind up as a bit of amplified reality. “More Than I Love Love” is aimed at a specific soul who still walks these streets and with whom I collided, in a very physical way, not so long ago–and since I never got a phone call back, might just warrant a sequel! These are the risks you run…so yes, they’re “from the heart”, but most of them tend to have a sense of humor or tongue deposited in cheek. Again, what I call the “clock-rock” brigade wouldn’t dare write anything quite so naked. But what in the world would encourage you to write and sing a song if not a love, or a lay? By the way, I’ve been forbidden by the band from writing any more songs with the word “love” in the title. Rest easy.

W&H: I listen to a song like “Hudson & Day” and it’s all so wonderfully suave and heroic. Are you guys all hopeless romantics Peter?

PETER: Just hopeless.

W&H: While there’s lots of romance, lust and desire in Saintface’s songs, I like the fact there’s also an incredible need in there too, and that it can often be quite messy and clandestine because obviously life’s not all wine and roses. A song like “There Is A Room”, for example, sounds pretty obsessional when you sing stuff like “I have sat and I have watched you from a hundred corners/ sipped my drink in every room while everyone adores you”. It’s magnificent, but a little chilly too. Do you like exploring the darker side with your lyrics?

PETER: I like exploring the darker side, lyrically or otherwise. Because it’s a huge part of human nature, the things that make you crawl. With “There Is a Room” I had a very particular place here in town in mind, where I’m able to lurk in the shadows and watch the whole human comedy unfurl, so those corners in the lyric are very real. The underbelly of love is obsession, and both offer up fantastic grist when it comes to writing songs. It’s interesting you’ve landed on this notion of “need”, because when people used to ask what Saintface songs were about, I’d say, “Love thwarted.” That’s changed slightly. “Love staggering,” maybe. And New York is crammed with those rooms, by the way. None of them on Ludlow Street or Bedford Avenue.

W&H: I guess the other observation that springs readily to mind is that Saintface’s music is very ‘cinematic’. There’s great attention to detail and musically the band have this big sweeping pop sound that drags the listener right in. Is there a patented Saintface method of writing a song and do movies/ theatre play a part in the way you sound?

PETER: We always aim for a sonic brashness, a lushness met with a certain punch or bite, and surely that has a root, for me, in a love for movies–I came to New York with ambitions of being a writer and director, and haven’t entirely put those aside, but those impulses have largely been fulfilled by Saintface. Your favorite music lives with you as a sort of personal soundtrack, and I’d love for us be that for someone–the music for the film in which you’re the romantic lead. Life is best lived as a sort of fiction…with a good tune entering at precisely the right moment.

W&H: Penultimate one for now – I love the album’s final song “You Belong To Me”: it’s such a glorious parting shot and – if you’ll cut me this much slack – sounds almost Bacharachian to me. Actually, it sounds like you took a lot of time to ensure “Apartment Stories” was sequenced the way it plays, but was “You Belong To Me” always intended as the record’s closing song?

PETER: “You Belong To Me” was always going to be the anchor at the end of the record, and I like to think of it as a bit of an emotional coda. “Apartment Stories” was very carefully sequenced, over some argument–but I do think it fell together in an almost obvious way. It’s hardly any sort of concept record, but there is a trip of peaks and valleys. The songs from the EP wound up lying back to back, which I was wary of, but the pace of the set demanded it, so so be it. “Parting shot” is an interesting way to describe it, because as conventional a message as it might seem to be, there’s still a hint of the obsession we’ve discussed in there–not to mention that it was recorded immediately after Michael fell face-first down a staircase.

W&H: Finally, now “Apartment Stories” is finally in our midst, what’s next on the agenda for Saintface? How are the touring plans looking and what would you like to do with the next album?

PETER: The record goes to college radio across the US in May, so we’re hoping to make a dent with the undergraduates, though as you might imagine a country as enormous as this is difficult to wrangle. We’re still a self-operated and financed entity, which has its challenges when it comes to awareness and marketing. So partnering with an established label would be a step in the right direction. I’ve also always thought we might make more sense to UK and European audiences, so paddling to that part of the world is another ambition if the fates allow. Until then we’ll be gallivanting up and down the east coast spreading the gospel and bellying up to the bar. There is a new record written and waiting panting in the wings…so like it or not, you’ve certainly not heard the last from us. Sorry to break the news this way–but it’s better you know up front.–Tim Peacock

SONYC Interview

SONYC: Tell me about your new LP Apartment Stories. It seems there’s a theme running through it.

PETER: Apartment Stories is a collection of songs that were all written in and inspired by life here in New York, though they could be about any big city really. Most of the songs are about relationships, real or imagined, that begin out of collision or chance…the sort of randomness and instant possibility that only a big city offers up, where you’re always anonymous and there’s always the specter of someone new around the corner. There’s a song on the album by the name of “There Is a Room” which suggests that somewhere in one of those hive-like glowing towers there’s a person waiting expressly for you–if only you, or he or she, knew it.
SONYC: Do relationships inspire you to write?

PETER: Relationships, or longed-for ones! Sometimes there’s something far more alluring about the intriguing stranger across the dimly lit room, or the familiar face you dare not speak to…both good grist for the mill. Marry either of those to something I can whistle and we’re off to the races.

SONYC: Let’s talk about the band and the music. What influences do you draw on, and to whom do people compare Saintface?

PETER: We each come from different musical walks of life, but I grew up on Top 40 radio when it was full of jubilant, brilliant pop songs–this is before it was smashed and carved into the various crap formats we know today–and from there I found my way to the great British pop groups of the ‘80s, which invariably comes out in the writing. What you hear at thirteen years old somehow manages to imprint itself on your heart, and when it comes time to write your own songs those influences are close at hand because they’re deep inside you. The so-called “Britpop” scene of the ‘90s also threw up a number of great groups with fantastic tunes, so those are touchstones as well. I admit to being something of an anglophile when it comes to pop music, but at the end of it all it’s about melody–I’m a big Cole Porter fan too, and he hailed from Indiana! Classic songs weather well regardless of how they’re dressed up or where they come from.

SONYC: Tell me about the beauties and tragedies of collaboration.

PETER: Well, it’s always beautiful when it works! And that can be hard going at times, but the different perspectives, instincts, and record collections of the five members of Saintface are what make the result. That clash of sensibilities is what keeps things fresh in the rehearsal room. I supply a sketch and a vision that never winds up quite the way I imagined, but is inevitably dragged in exciting directions I wouldn’t and couldn’t have imagined on my own. When people who can really play surround you, and they attack a piece of music for the first time, it’s exhilarating. The song clambers to its feet and grows exponentially as everyone hones their particular angle. And fights their corner!

SONYC: You went to film school, but decided to go in a musical direction. Why is that?

PETER: When you spend any time in the film world you quickly realize the crushing slowness with which things are done–the endless waste and meandering about until the entire endeavor can seem like so much plumbing. The instant gratification of songwriting and performing is something altogether different, though there are similarities from a formal point of view–you’re working with a piece of music that has a narrative thrust, and we do aim to make cinematic records, records with scope and ambition. We stitched Apartment Stories together ourselves, and that can be difficult to achieve when you’re independent, but it’s an important ideal for us. On a personal level, I also realized early on that it would be far more interesting to sort of “inhabit” the story rather than be simply behind the camera. That’s where performance comes in. Not to mention a very rich fantasy life!

SONYC: Is there a difference between “independent” and “indie”?

PETER: Without putting too sharp a point on it, “independent” is a state of mind and a stance of self-empowerment; “indie” can be a state of self-congratulatory failure, a closed clique. We’re not particularly interested in a scene that claps itself on the back and makes a virtue out of its own limited ambition. We’re here to mix it up with the big boys–that’s us knocking politely. But at the end of the day it’s really not that important–we’re only talking pop music.

SONYC: Is pop music not important?

PETER: Only as important as your life. I’m of the mind that if you don’t have something to whistle then you’re dead. –Amy Chace

The Pill

Have you ever noticed how the word “timeless” is applied to so many products nowadays? Descriptions of even the most mundane items, like saltine crackers and bottled water, have become timeless. “Timeless” is a marketer’s dream. They throw it at us all the time because they think it’s going to elicit an emotional response from us. The media loves to bombard us with “timeless” because they think that slapping that label on the hottest movie, book, or band is going to make us want to spend our money on these so-called sensations. There gets to be a point where we are so inundated with timeless, that quite the opposite response occurs: we get bored and apathetic.

There is a bright side to this, however. In a sense, the media provides us a service by causing us to be so jaded. This is especially true when it comes to the latest up-and-coming bands. In a veritable sea of carbon copy sounds and American Idol dreams, we’ve truly garnered the ability to wake up and smell transcendent timelessness when the alarm goes off in our faces. It’s painfully obvious that the snooze button is an unfathomable option when it comes to New York’s Saintface.

Together since 2001, this five-piece creates a truly timeless sound and performance. It’s an easy thing to do when you intrinsically have the essence of timeless sophistication coursing through your veins. As dedicated followers of 80’s and 90’s new wave and Britpop, Saintface are pop addicts who feel as though melody is the key factor in making music. Frontman Peter Riley, guitarist David Blake, bassist Joe Babic, keyboardist Michael Parkin, and drummer Andy Elder were sent to us by divine intervention to blow our little romanticist minds away.

Based on the strength of their three-track EP, “Hudson & Day,” Saintface have managed to garner a dedicated following in both New York and Boston. The title track has been hanging off the lips of locals since the band’s British Accents Anniversary show last year, when they managed to trump other Smiths-ian sensations, including a mutated Good North/Information cover band playing on home turf. Endless shows in their home city have brought a focus to a new sound that playfully borrows from the tried and true and won’t be easily slapped on the front page or in neon lights but nestles firmly in the bedrooms of the lost romantics near and far.

But to fully appreciate the delivery of Saintface, you can easily think back to your first listen of the Smiths, the feeling of your own personal parting of the sea unfolding before your ears. That’s the impact “Hudson & Day” could have. Fast forward some 17 years (give or take, depending on where you came from) and that kind of excitement is brewing again. Everything from Riley’s hope-drenched vocal delivery to the perfect guitar parts is a veritable romanticist’s wet dream. “Eight Days A Week” and “New York’s Favorite Plaything” also have anthemic potential. Quite frankly, everything about these songs is perfect.

Saintface’s live performance is also something that leaves an indelible mark. Although it helps that they’re as good-looking as good-looking can get, it’s evident that Riley possesses a timeless confidence that is so rare in people, eliciting the ghost of a Martin Rossiter gone by. He slithers and writhes all over the stage like a dog in an emotional heat, and it’s– well, absolutely mesmerizing. Sometimes when one is stuck in their own little performance world, the audience can be non-existent. Not for Riley, though. When he’s up there, he imparts his confidence on the audience and tries to get them involved. His come hither stares draw people in and he soon has them by the palm of his hand.

One temporary drawback to the rising Saintface tide is the dearth of releases to date. With “Hudson & Day” out on the streets for almost two years now, it’s easy to burn through this beautiful teaser. The EP is seemingly only a taste of things to come, as Saintface just finished recording and mastering their 11-track album titled “Apartment Stories,” and they are in the process of seeking to release it. Early demos of “A Few Kind Women” and “Never Leave My Mind” continue to bring comparisons to Morrissey’s best solo work.

But in the meantime, we cling desperately and longingly to the timelessness of “Hudson & Day” as we deal with the shock and reality that there is finally something better out there for us. –Leaura Levine

Splendid E-Zine

This is a three-song fist of glutinous Anglophilia from a New York City band whose apparent disfranchisement with the aching hipness of their musical surroundings manifests itself within tautly knit Brit-Pop mantras, peppered with decidedly louche drawls that recall every mild-mannered English crooner from Bryan Ferry to Jarvis Cocker to Ian McCulloch. It’s decidedly ambitious fare…

The chorus of “New York’s Favorite Plaything”, for example, could feasibly serenade a sunset sing-along at Glastonbury, “Eight Days A Week” could comfortably induce random outbursts of sweaty hugging in the pubs of Camden, and the title track actually sounds like a lovelorn young Morrissey quoffing steak and kidney pie during a miners’ strike.

If only Interpol were to invite them on tour… — Allan Harrison

Time Out New York

Saintface plays decadent pop that evokes two decades of British music, from ABC to Pulp and The Divine Comedy–singer Peter Riley’s vocals help complete the illusion.

The Village Voice

Saintface draw smartly from ’80s and ’90s England: Smiths-like swooning suggests youthful passion and Britpop atmospherics give their well-wrought songs depth and crunch. –Hoard

The Village Voice

When and if that New Romantics retro phase goes down, Saintface is poised front and center. Marrying vocals à la Moz or ABC with Suede/Oasis guitar heft, their live shows are a power pack, though fainting flower indie kids should mind themselves close to the stage. The fourth wall comes down pretty fast in singer Peter Riley’s path. –Dufresne

Melodynelson.com

If New York City has been bringing us bands with influences from all over the musical spectrum, you have to admit that there was one major influence missing… but not anymore, because thanks to Saintface, all of you Smiths fans will be happy to hear the revival. I’m sure it gets annoying for an up-and-coming band to constantly hear “you sound like so and so”, but c’mon, we’re talking about The Smiths here, one of the most adored bands of our times…so coming from a huge fan, this is a compliment.

Once you look past the similarities, you’ll realize that Saintface plays great pop-rock tunes that will stick to your head like all good songs should. Best of all though is the stage presence, with five lively members and a frontman as charming as can be. Saintface proves to live up to what a solid live performance should be in the first place: entertaining.

Jenyk.com

With the proliferation of all things 80’s currently going on here in NYC, and perhaps all over the world, you’d think that a band like Saintface might get lost in the new wave nostalgic shuffle. BUT, and this coming from a sworn enemy of everything and anything Smiths-related, I thoroughly enjoyed their high-energy, girl-pleasing, dance/mope set.

Yes–and I’m sure he’s heard it and will hear it ad-infinitum for the rest of his musical career–Peter Saintface apes the vocal stylings of a certain coiffed sexually ambiguous lead singer some call Moz, but he does so in a way that not only expands on it but forges his own style that exudes a certain sexiness and playfulness (what the hell am I writing?) that Stephen Patrick never quite had–or at least didn’t in all the videos I’ve ever seen of him. –Jasper Coolidge

Hardglitter.com

It was 1985 and we were in some crowded bar in London, and we patiently waited for the band to pick up their instruments and fill the air with a soaring wall of sound that would only make people drink, dance and feel wonderful. Or at least, that’s what it felt like Saturday evening.

It’s my undying faith in britpop that makes it a most pleasurable experience to listen to a band like Saintface. With an elegantly fashioned pop sound that will never will go out of style, Saintface should prove to be a lasting force in the NYC music circuit. As the members of Saintface ready their equipment on the Mercury Lounge stage, Blur’s “Parklife” streams through the speakers, and it’s just oh so appropriate. Perhaps preparing the audience for the wave of anglophilia…and it never looked so good.

Saintface provide the perfect marriage of britpop sensibilities and sugary synth-pop and bring forth gorgeous melodies. The new wave sound they so aptly adopt is presented in its truest and most genuine form. Saintface’s tunes remind us of a great era of music that people have been head over heels with for years.

Peter Riley, frontman extraordinaire, woos the crowd with a healthy dose of Morrissey & the rhythm and finesse of Jarvis Cocker. Peter’s onstage eccentricities set the background for his soothing, seductive vocals. He’s entertaining as he is charming, belting out the high notes and showing off his lush, polished tunes. The man’s on a quest for the great pop song…the type of song you’ll be humming to yourself when you wake up in the morning. His keen ear for great hooks is fondly portrayed in their Hudson and Day EP. The title track is an uplifting tune with moments of sweeping synth and a compelling charisma.

Michael Parkin stands off to the side, silently working away on the keys, injecting each song with a glorious synthesized touch. Dave Blake churns away on the guitar and Joe Babic on the bass (who’ve you no doubt seen before several times, even if you don’t know him), and on drums, Andy Elder happily smiles with a darling visage and loves to hear that crazy beat. No pun.

I absolutely adore Saintface, mainly because they’re making music much like the kind I’ve grown up on and have always loved listening to but has since gotten lost in the booming lo-fi scene. A great pop song is timeless, and will be great decades after it’s been written. That’s what they strive for regardless of trends, crazes, and rages. If their EP is any indication of what’s to come, then I wait in anticipation. This sharp-dressed, classy five piece definitely have it. — Ria Ammar

Popmatters.com

The first time I saw Saintface was several months ago, in August at the Mercury Lounge. I had heard they were Brit poppy, so I went to check them out. From the moment that lead singer Peter Riley, a tall well-put together guy with slicked back hair, started singing, I couldn’t believe how much he reminded me of Morrissey. His stage swagger and his vocals were reminiscent of Moz, and frankly, it shocked me. But by the third song, I was converted. The songs were infectious and made me nostalgic for The Smiths. I found myself smiling throughout their set. Later I found, it wasn’t just me. Most of my friends who were mega Moz fans also fell in love with Saintface. The epidemic was growing.

So when I went to the Saintface show at the end of October, I felt the same rush as the first time I saw them — except this time I knew the words to the songs from their EP, Hudson & Day, and could sing along, joyfully. Their music is unabashedly poppy and sounds so goddamn polished, both live and recorded.

While Riley is jauntily roaming around stage, his vocals are amazingly flawless, which is sort of thrilling and almost hard-to-believe. In one of my favorite Saintface songs, “Hudson & Day”, Riley airily coos about the ups and downs of searching for the perfect romance:

We could meet one another / Somewhere more interesting than halfway / We could be for each other / Rock Hudson and Doris Day.

Each note is calculated carefully and delivered effortlessly into perfect symmetry with the rest of the band who all work off each other’s vigor.

Oftentimes, Riley will fall onto his knees or collapse onto his back, seemingly exhausted from the vocal exertions. But never does he stop singing or stop trying to engage the audience. He’ll lean forward on the sound monitors, motioning people to come forward, come closer. His confidence is unwavering and magnetic. And sometimes he can be a little saucy with his stage banter. It all comes together in the end, though, and their live shows are all the better for it.

Through lively and dramatic bursts, Michael Parkin jumps up and down all over his keyboards, rocking them back and forth with force. Andy Elder drums hard, propelling the songs forward into fast, booming paces. Both guitarist David Blake and bassist Joe Babic are the two more understated members, tending not to dabble in stage theatrics as much as the rest of the group. But that kind of balanced performance works for Saintface, and their exuberance is catching. — Jin Moon

Earlash.com

Immediately upon their arrival onstage, Saintface’s quick, boppy beats reunited the audience with a traditional UK New Wave dance flavor from the ’80s and ’90s. With Joe Babic and Regan Rowan on bass and guitar, Andy Elder on drums, Michael Parkin on keyboards and Peter Riley playing pop-god, none of them are strangers to the Brit-pop sound. Peter’s brooding voice imitates a good dose of Morrissey. He has a strong ability to mellow out the crowd and then drop the masses back into dance mode.

“Eight Days a Week” is really pleasing to the ears and enjoyable live, but I can’t help but wonder how it would sound if a girl sang it. Not to imply that Riley is replaceable, but it is a good enough tune that you can foresee it to be a million-dollar cover song. Maybe in years to come, I could be onto something.

Peter Riley plays the role of lead singer in a pop band quite well. His dramatic stage presence transforms into a New York City version of Jarvis Cocker, but with the seduction of Morrissey’s vocal chords. You can’t go wrong with that. Because of his energetic and charismatic stage movements, it presents a soothing likeability to their live music.

With songs like “I Love You Madly” and “Maybe I,” Saintface’s songs are anthems of heartache. “Hellworthy” is the one exception only because it doesn’t have that bouncy, Brit-pop styling to it. Instead, the mechanical tune of the song imitates a hymn staged for a death row procession … or perhaps a devoted tribute to Nick Cave?

Saintface lures you with their pop ballads, a musical endeavor that we’ve missed the last couple of years. With their current EP, Hudson & Day, they are quickly streaming into the indie pop circuit, and enjoying a growing popularity in the UK. However, Saintface is not your typical indie garage rock or even indie pop band. Saintface proves to be in the pack of good up-and-coming New York City bands. You’ll soon find yourself crooning to their catchy heartbreak songs in the shower and in your car.

The Weekly Dig (Boston)

Tea with Morrissey, long conversations with Billy Bragg and late night drinking binges with The London Suede. New York City’s Saintface must have experienced all of this, because they’ve combined the best elements of all three on this EP with style and grace. Listening to this EP, I imagine myself walking through the city while the nightlife is hot, and I’m feeling it, and then I’m in London on a dreary day sitting in the pub, wondering what happened to the love of my life.

After about 5,000 listens I began to think that Saintface is using subliminal messages in their CD telling me to sing, because I keep belting out the songs, and I can tell people are slightly aggravated hearing my horrible voice. The hooks are so catchy that they run laps in my mind for hours, and I don’t want them to ever get tired.

I have always been a sucker for a beautiful, intelligent, well-written rock song, and Saintface has just raised the bar in American Brit Pop. I have heard a bunch of people saying that the NYC music scene is overrated, but if New York keeps putting out bands like Saintface, then all you haters are just full of small talk. –Mick Taggert

Whisperin and Hollerin (UK)

Hudson & Day EP–8 out of 10 stars

Despite hailing from New York City, SAINTFACE are a smart quintet, whose sound will quickly wrong foot those of you who are expecting us to be praising yet another angular outfit whose main aim in life is to cop The Strokes moves (which they’ve already siphoned from Television and Guided By Voices anyway) and win a Luella Bartley clothes sponsorship in the process.

Indeed, the briefest snatch of the title track “Hudson & Day” will tell you that Saintface have far loftier ideas, and rightly so, because this kind of beautifully-tailored, string-driven (warranted in its’ usage) pop never goes out of fashion in the most discerning household.

Actually, the comparisons that spring to this reviewer’s mind are chiefly English, such is the strength of Saintface’s cool, Anglophile itinery. The title track is luscious and exciting, recalling the likes of both Pulp at their finest and also great ‘80s troupes like The Colourfield (musically), with the added attraction of Peter Riley’s louche and deeply seductive voice.

Amazingly, “Hudson & Day” – the best song about two converging streets since The Afghan Whigs’ fabulous “Fountain & Fairfax” – was recorded in Riley’s kitchen(!), but the standard of musicianship is impressive throughout, with second tune “Eight Days A Week” (no, not THAT one) again weighing in with memorable hooks and the closing “New York’s Favorite Plaything” initially throwing a curve with its’ fuzzed up, Black Rebel bassline launching proceedings into a much darker part of town.

Blessed with reserves of style and verve – not to mention several potential sonic secret weapons, especially in the shape of keyboardist Michael Parkin – Saintface are already pencilling in their own agenda regardless of the present scene’s vagaries, whilst looking and sounding like championship material. Those of you who demand more from your favorite bands (and you should) ought to be looking in this direction already. –Tim Peacock