  Matchless
You Shaped
Curve
Maelstrom Music
CD Review by
Dave Liljengren
As the band's
first full-length disc, You Shaped Curve
is both a milestone and a time capsule for
Seattle quartet, Matchless. Formed in 1997, the
band has played consistently around Seattle since
then, made timid road forays to perform at
destinations as far away as New York City, and
released two eps, a self-titled one in 1997 and On
the Surface and in the Deep in 1998. They've
also had ample opportunity to refine and revise
their guitar-based, post-Sonic Youth, alt-rock sound. The
laudable, audible, precision with which this disc
has been crafted is a testament to their
professional development. Some of the 13 songs
included here debuted on the earlier eps, but
these versions can stand as the definitive ones
and the disc itself is an accurate capsulization
of the band's three year history. Working in a
post-L7, pre-emo vein, Matchless
composes distortion-filled chamber rock for two
guitars, bass and drums. The bulk of the vocals
are handled by bassist Molly Kenny, who writes
many of the lyrics. Her plaintive voice cuts
through the many-layered instrumental mix like
searchlights in the night sky. There's beauty on
this record. There's rock too.
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