ALBUM REVIEW: Barbe-Q-Barbies – Borrowed Time

This album starts with a bang. Diz-Funk-Tional is the first track from the latest BARBE-Q-BARBIES album Borrowed Time and I instantly loved it. It’s fast paced and it made me want to move straight away. I have listened to this track about 100 times already as I can’t get it out of my head! Catchy, edgy and gives me all the bad-ass rock chick vibes I look for in a band like this.

BARBE-Q-BARBIES are an all girl Finnish rock band who are raw, dirty and bad to the bone. Wanting to set themselves apart from the “auto-tuned wannabes”; they throw their passion, hard rock influences and talent into their sound. They really don’t disappoint. If you are looking for some sexy rock chicks with some catchy pop rock tunes, look no further.

The vocals are strong and powerful. The band’s forceful sound reminds me of a few other strong female fronted groups from THE RUNAWAYS to THE PRETTY RECKLESS or HALESTORM. They have a kind of presence that demands reverence and captures your attention by not conforming to generic girl band attitudes or styles.

Throughout their career, they have not lost this approach or purpose and have stayed very true to themselves. They work from their own talent and don’t conform to anyone’s rules but their own, which is something I adore. Having an all female band is also really refreshing to me and something I can definitely get on board with.

All little girls should have role models like these. Ones that make us all aware of what it is to be real, to be true and to forge your own path. Also, not to worry about society’s idea of what girls and women should be, that true talent is worth more than superficial characteristics.

Borrowed Time is the fourth album from the BARBE-Q-BARBIES and has some really great danceable tracks which I keep coming back to. The song On & On is a great example of this and for any long time fans, has the same vibes as the 2013 classic STFU. This song is so radio worthy and has such a great guitar line, brilliant solo and subtle but strong drums keeping it flowing perfectly throughout.

The track Alive is a slower more mellow song with a strong chorus. Although the lyrics are simple, they are commanding. This song is a nice break and it adds some variety within the album. Only without just writing a standard ballad that would take the tone in an odd direction. It creates a great balance between being raw and being soft.

I really enjoyed listening to this album and will be looking out for any of their UK shows in the future. My only complaint is that the album is quite short and seemed it was over so quickly. This isn’t a bad thing necessarily; it’s a good way to get people coming back for more. As a new fan, it shows how engaging the whole album was. With it being so short, I ended up listening to it all the way through a lot more times as I enjoyed it so much.

Rating: 8/10

Words: Amanda Nicholls