21st Century Music: The Beths
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There haven’t been many acts to make it in North America out of New Zealand, but one recently blazing a fiery path over the past five years has been the power pop quartet, The Beths.
In 2019 I had tickets to see them in the tiny Garrison Club in Toronto (with the excellent Bad Bad Hats opening, no less), but missed it due to illness. I missed them again later that year at the slightly larger venue, The Horseshoe Tavern. I finally saw them at a sold out show at Lee’s Palace in 2022 (with another good opener in Rosie Tucker) and then again recently at another sold out affair, this time at the more spacious Phoenix Concert Theatre. So, judging on just their Toronto trajectory, and despite a two-year hiatus thanks to the pandemic, The Beths have moved from a club of a couple hundred people to one of 1,350, each time playing to adoring audiences. That’s a heck of a start to one’s career in a city that is fourteen thousand kilometres from your hometown of Auckland. And who said rock is dead?
The Beths original line-up (L to R): Ivan Luketina-Johnson; Jonathan Pearce; Elizabeth Stokes; and Benjamin Sinclair
The band originated when four jazz students at the University of Auckland came together. High school friends and couple, Elizabeth Stokes (lead vocals/guitar) and Jonathan Pearce (vocals/guitar), joined with Ivan Luketina-Johnston (vocals/drums) and Benjamin Sinclair (vocals/bass), often playing together to back Ivan’s jazz act. Deciding to create a rock band in 2014, as principal songwriter, Elizabeth named the band after herself and they released their first single, “Idea/Intent,” in 2015. The line-up held until Luketina-Johnson left in 2018, replaced by Tristan Deck on drums in 2019.
There have since been an EP and three albums issued. The 2016 EP, Warm Blood, got them started in New Zealand and Australia and was issued internationally along with the release of their first LP in 2018, Future Me Hates Me, which achieved critical success among indie audiences in North America. The second LP, Jump Rope Grazers, was issued during the pandemic yet still did well despite not being able to tour it. Most recently, they’ve issued their most accomplished LP yet, Expert in A Dying Field.
The Beths’ success has been buoyed by an impressive consistency of high-quality songs. Across their albums is nary a skipper track. Relying mostly on propulsive, tightly arranged, power pop rumbling under Stokes’ warm, inviting vocals and distinctive, accented (to us non-Kiwis) lilt, the band in studio or live wins audiences with an onslaught of hooks and catchy riffs. However, these are not simple songs. They are packed with intricate webs of guitar interplay, lively basslines and beats, and most importantly, impeccable harmonies thanks to all four members contributing to the vocals. They follow in the long line of pop-rock tradition going back to the earliest days of rock ‘n’ roll. The result is my kryptonite: even-paced, wall-of-sound, rocking songs delivered with an edge. There was just no way I wasn’t going to be a fan of this band.
The current line-up (L to R): Jon; Liz; Ben; & Tristan
The future is bright for The Beths. Each album has been a little more polished and more smartly crafted. And while each album has varied their sound a little, they haven’t strayed far from their power-pop formula. They’ll likely need to broaden their sonic palette to sustain or run the risk of becoming a one-trick pony. There is more than enough talent in this group to deliver something more varied and interesting while maintaining their penchant for catchy, infectious grooves.
The band is currently on tour in North America and Europe through most of 2023, including slots as opener for The National. Do not miss the chance to see them.
The Playlist - “song”\album (year)
Their current promo pick plays on the “Knees Deep” video, in which each band member escapes from rehearsal to go bungee jumping. Just one example of the band’s understated sense of humour and fun.
“Idea/Intent” \ Warm Blood EP (2015)
“Lying in the Sun” \ Warm Blood EP (2016)
“Great No One” \ Future Me Hates Me (2017)
“Future Me Hates Me” \ Future Me Hates Me (2018)
“You Wouldn’t Like Me” \ Future Me Hates Me (2018)
“Little Death” \ Future Me Hates Me (2018)
“Happy Unhappy” \ Future Me Hates Me (2018)
“I’m Not Getting Excited” \ Jump Rope Grazers (2020)
“Dying to Believe” \ Jump Rope Grazers (2020)
“Jump Rope Grazers” \ Jump Rope Grazers (2020)
“You Are A Beam of Light” \ Jump Rope Grazers (2020)
“Expert in A Dying Field” \ Expert in A Dying Field (2022)
“Knees Deep” \ Expert in A Dying Field (2022)
“Silence Is Golden” \ Expert in A Dying Field (2022)
“Best Left” \ Expert in A Dying Field (2022)
“A Passing Rain” \ Expert in A Dying Field (2022)
