“Scars” is the third album by Australian four-piece Sisters Doll, due for release on 24 January 2025 ahead of the band making their first foray to these shores in May.
Hailing from Western Australia, whilst many bands from the land down under tend to follow the sonic template established by fellow compatriots the brothers Young, Sisters Doll take an altogether more glam approach. “Scars” showcases this to fine effect, highlighting their versatility and full range, with a big, bold widescreen sound, full of epic riffs, harmonies and melodies aplenty. And whilst they are evidently fine musicians, technical skills count for little if you don’t have the songs to back it up, but “Scars” scores highly on that front too.
The instrumental Purgatory opens the album with a flamenco strum, and some tasty acoustic guitar setting the scene in suitably dramatic and atmospheric fashion before the brooding Climbing Out of Hell kicks in and demands you sit up and listen. It’s a study in contrasts; quieter in places, ferociously dynamic in others, with some truly impressive guitar histrionics that can be seen both here and across the entirety of the opus.
In fact, throughout the album as a whole Sisters Doll display an uncanny ability to wed hard edged riffing with big melodies to maximum effect. It’s a winning formula that should see them garner acclaim in the rock scene but could equally capture mainstream cross-over success such is the quality and accessibility of the songs on offer here. It’s fun and compelling and oh so listenable, without compromising any of their rock credibility. Next track Prisoner is a case in question, driving riffs, big choruses and beautifully effective keyboards that fill out the band’s sound to arena-conquering proportions. Baby Doll by contrast is a darker track bringing back the power chords and a subtle undercurrent riff in the background.
Now, any melodic rock band worth its salt needs a couple of slower, balladic numbers in their arsenal, and whilst some may pass over these slower songs, Sisters Doll make you pause before you reach (metaphorically) for that skip button. Tracks like First Time and Don’t Give Up on Us manage to pack in the emotion with some inventive and bold song arrangements, whilst never sacrificing the power or becoming saccharine.
The final single to be released before the album’s launch, United, takes us back to heads down, full throttle rock territory, with punchy riffing (bringing to mind vintage Motley Crue in their heyday) and impactful, flamboyant drums and a chorus destined to be sung back from thousands of stages for years to come. Equally, Kiss Me is a beautifully melodic glam stomp, all rolling drums, hand claps, a glittering keyboard riff, a short but exquisite solo and more hooks than a fishing trip. It’s a song that begs to be heard in a live environment and UK audiences can judge it for themselves when the band play their first UK shows in May supporting Kickin Valentina across a handful of dates.
Eponymous final track Scars brings things full circle with an ethereal acoustic to close the album; delicate and heartfelt for most of its length before a much heavier section with drums front and centre and some more fiery guitar work brings it to a breathless conclusion.
“Scars” is a well-produced, excellently played glam attack for the 21st century; whilst it may call to mind those halcyon Sunset Strip days, when the likes of Motley Crue, Poison and Dokken ruled the nights, there is a disarming freshness and unselfconscious charm to Sisters Doll’s third album, that is hard to resist. This album certainly transports you back to that golden era of rock music in the eighties and nineties and is an assured and confident release that might just be the one that sees the Mileto Brothers take that step up in rock’s big leagues….
