Thrift

THRIFT, “Thrift”

Indie-rock duo Thrift—comprising Mark Malagise and Anna Carmela—has not just released its eponymous EP, but the fervent hard-rocking duo hurls it with blowtorch intensity to head banger aficionados around the globe. The seven-song concept collective tells the story of the decay—and ultimate burial—of a doomed relationship, opening with “Warning Signs (Dirty Lover),” which makes the message loud and clear, as it screeches and claws with a titillating mesh of fuzzy electric guitars. Following is first single “Mockingbird,” which delivers a frantic lo-fi hand grenade with a blur of grungy guitars, pounding percussion and bashing bass; and equally eight-cylinder bombast “Stop.” “Heroine” then provides an exhale, as Carmela sings amid a ponderous mystical and warped piano-driven arrangement, “I’ll never be who you wanted and you know everything about me/So take me for granted and spill my ashes on the floor... Sweet Heroine.” “Trigger Finger” craftily re-amps the tempo, followed by hitworthy “Dead & Buried,” with its clap-happy mantra, “Six feet under and I don’t even miss you/Left you lying in the dirt and I killed the addiction.” Redemption comes, at last, in Thrift’s closing number “Tides,” a lovely ballad about the freedom of independence, as Carmela offers, “I dream of better times.” Not for the faint of heart, Thrift’s debut EP offers a sonic inferno opus packed with passion, as electrifying as a key jammed in a socket—and ultimately, an adept rock’n’roll paean.

Entertainment journalist Chuck Taylor worked for more than a decade at Billboard magazineas a Senior Editor/Writer and Single Reviews Editor. - Chuck Taylor, Billboard

THRIFT - "Trigger Finger"

First thing I notice and completely fall in love with is her voice. I feel like she has felt this more than once. For a second I thought I was listening to a female version of Kurt Cobain. Again, great vocal style/effect. It feels like she's right up in your face. The colouring with the guitar is perfect. The outro is something special, beautiful strings, so emotional...and it made me connect to the deeper meaning of the song. This would be a cool closing track for an album. I'm a new fan.

The writers and producers of these tracks are genius. Such a clear and present style. It feels like it's going somewhere. Like it has a point, something to say. I would pay to see this band, and I don't say that very often.

Kris Searle is a Vh1 Songwriter, 5 time Los Angeles Music Awards Winner, and Indie Record Label Owner. - Kris Searle, Vh1 Songwriter, 5 time Los Angeles Music Awards Winner, Indie Record Label Owner

Very professional. I was surprised to see that they are a duo... A lot of sound from only two performers.

Bruce Replogle is a legendary rock music publicist and promoter (John Lennon, The Cure, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, etc.). - Bruce Replogle, publicist for John Lennon & Yoko Ono

"Forget the trends, the hype, and the breezy pop tunes for a second. If all boy-girl duos were put to the ultimate survival-of-the-fittest test, Los Angeles-based THRIFT would swallow all synth-pop duos whole and spit them back out in the time one hits the power button on a Korg. Members Anna Carmela and Mark Malagise call their music “dirty disco” and with full-throttle songs like “Warning Signs (Dirty Lover)” off their self-titled EP, one can’t disagree with that self-branding. With Carmela sounding like a sweeter Tracy Bonham, THRIFT offers no-nonsense rock with just enough of a hook to spill out with the noise." - Seraphina Lotkhamnga