Some Gorgeous Accident’s The Lovers of their Opposites is a beauty of a swan song

Some Gorgeous Accident’s The Lovers of their Opposites is a beauty of a swan song

by rick olivares

If you are a fan of Jeff Buckley’s Grace, Tim Buckley’s Happy Sad, Weezer’s Pinkerton, Club 8’s Nouvelle, Prefab Sprout’s Steve McQueen to name a select few melancholic albums, then you must get – and I mean get – Some Gorgeous Accident’s The Lovers of their Opposites.

The Lovers and their Opposites is the last – for now – album of Some Gorgeous Accident.

Some Gorgeous Accident is the multi-talented Dale Marquez and a bunch of talented musicians. Much like New Radicals was with Greg Alexander. 

Marquez might not be a household name like his contemporaries in the 1990s band scene such as Ely Buendia, Cooky Chua, or Chito Miranda, but he made some of the most diverse and beautiful music in the indie scene.

During the 90s heydays, his shoegazer band, Sonnet 58, was a mainstay of the old Club Dredd along Edsa. Along with Sugar Hiccup, they brought a very diverse scene into the stratosphere. Come the new millennium, he formed an indiepop act, Apple Orchard with his brother Ryan. Their initial song appeared in the twee pop compilation album, Mutual Admiration Society. Then around late 2006, Marquez re-worked an unused Apple Orchard track into a song that eventually morphed into the sound of Some Gorgeous accident.

Marquez initially performed all the instruments and sang the songs but he admitted he wasn’t satisfied with the result. “I decided to invite some friends to perform or even sing the songs. That gave it the depth and perfectness – if you want to call it that way – for the songs to come to fruition,” said Marquez.

While Some Gorgeous Accident’s music can be classified as shoegazer, it isn’t unequivocally so. There are tinges of Marquez’ previous bands – Twee and Indietronica – that are wrapped around an airy and shimmering sound.

After a couple of extended play releases in Winter in Watercolors, Imaginary Lines, and Winter Evergreen, Some Gorgeous Accident returns to say goodbye with The Lovers of their Opposites that is released by that uber cool American indie label, Shelflife Records. It’s a hauntingly beautiful album that stays with you long after you’ve played it.

That’s 14 pieces of pop confectionary that can be both soothing and bittersweet at the same time. There are three different female leads on songs here. “Panorama” opens the album and Micaela Benedicto of Outerhope lends her forlorn vocals adding to the wistful feeling. Plus, its perfect for late afternoon walks most especially during fall.

Marquez’s wife, Connie Francis, follows up on “Blush” that reminds me of British band, Pale Saints, one of Some Gorgeous Accident’s influences.

In the third song, “What Comes Around”, Alyana Cabral brings a mournful and shimmering voice to this song.

For the uninitiated, there might not be any difference, but if you listen intently, the gentle inflections are obvious and all three vocalists add their own nuances to each song. And Dale, not to be outdone, also commits his mournful baritone especially in the fourth track, “Falling Fast”. By the fifth song, “See You Shine”, with Arina Epiphania fluttering away in the background, it’s close to heavenly.

And it’s that way for the entire album. As such, The Lovers of their Opposites is a darn good album and one worthy in any music fan’s library. More so if this is indeed the last for Some Gorgeous Accident.

According to Marquez, he’s spent the last 20 plus years working on his musical dream. “Now,” says the multi-instrumentalist who moved to El Sobrente, California a few years ago. “is the time to give my family some time. I have a young daughter and I think I need to give her time as she grows up. But I am not saying this is the end of making music. This is for now. But also for now, let’s just say this is the last album of Some Gorgeous Accident.”

Dale was in Manila last December where an impromptu listening party was held to launch The Lovers of their Opposites. “I brought in about 35 compact discs and I was able to sell all of them. And that’s pretty cool when people tell me that they love the album. It makes you want to keep on making music.”

We hope that he does.

Note: For those interested in picking up the album, you might want to check with Shelflife Records through their website and Facebook page.