O. Children - O. Children

When someone hears the term goth, they most likely think of pitch black clothing, slicked back hair, and depressing music. This however, is a very narrow minded way of looking at it. Some of the best bands in history have experimented with the goth approach, including Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, Joy Division, The Cure, and Depeche Mode, to name a few. Then there is the London-based band O. Children. These four men create a modern take on this style and are, in fact, named after a Nick Cave track. Now you can see how the dots are connecting. O. Children's music is dark music at its finest. I could even go as far as saying that they resemble Bauhaus or Joy Division. A band however, can only take so many comparisons before being another copycat, and this is something O. Children don't want to be known as. Their music draws comparisons but it also has a unique and innovative approach to this type of genre, and it is an approach that is very pleasing to my ears.

O. Children take themselves seriously and want to be taken seriously. They do not want to be known as a band following in the footsteps of acts such as Bauhaus, Joy Division, or even The Horrors. There is a bass-heavy pulse in the music, as well as singer Tobi O'Kandi's baritone vocals, that helps to keep the band in a league of their own. They have been called the first essential band of the decade and after listening, I know that truer words have never been spoken. I do not listen to unique music to be different or trendy, but I listen to it because I know that bands such as O. Children can easily make a name for themselves with the right amount of exposure. The radio needs new essential artists and O. Children fit right into that category. They create amazing dark pop music that needs to be heard and who cares if they make it big. We don't need anymore indie/art-rock kids saying that once music is big and popular it is no longer good. If a person likes a band and then dislikes them for gaining wide exposure, this person is not really a true fan and is a disgrace to the music industry as a whole.

O. Children have successfully made a name for themselves with the release of their self-titled album. The four members are masters at their craft and have brought back the goth rock sensibility of the 80's with a new twist. From start to finish, O. Children's self-titled album touches on dark pop and goth rock with a little shoegaze and ambient mixed in. Everyone should keep a close watch on O. Children for the mere fact that they are modern legends. There have been many bands over the years that have tried to re-create 80's sounding pop similar to Joy Division and Bauhaus, and O. Children are the first ones to succeed.

Check out the tracks 'Ruins' and 'Pray The Soul Away' off of O' Children's self-titled album: