The Handcuffs - Burn The Rails

Burn The Rails, the long-awaited fourth album from The Handcuffs, will be available this Friday, June 3 on Bandcamp. The Chicago-based indie rock quintet led by drummer Brad Elvis (The Romantics, The Elvis Brothers, Screams) is justifiably praised for its expertise in channeling 1970s glam rock. But that’s just part of the story. As on their previous release, Waiting For The Robot, the new Burn The Rails successfully explores a variety of approaches.

Some of these tracks, such as the glam rockers “Big Fat Mouth Shut” and “Pretty Pretty” will be familiar to fans since The Handcuffs have been performing them at gigs over the past few years. Lead vocalist-guitarist Chloe F. Orwell always delivers this kind of material with an entertaining sense of fun and bravado. The ribald “She Ain’t No Fluffer,” which features Mott The Hoople veteran Morgan Fisher on synthesizer, and the energetic “Love Me While You Can” were released as a double single in 2021. Still, it’s good to have them included in this new collection.

“Dancing With The Dandies,” which kicks off with Brad Elvis pounding away on drums, finds The Handcuffs again in glam rock territory. The playful “I’m Happy Just To Dream With You,” by comparison, has a hint of vaudeville accented by Fisher’s energetic piano work. “The Ballad Of  Fritz And Zoom” pulls us into the eye of a psychedelic hurricane with an energetic arrangement reminiscent of Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir.” “I Cry For You,” the most recent single release from The Handcuffs, could be the best track on the album. An enticing mix of acoustic and electric guitars, along with Orwell’s dreamy vocals, creates a mystical allure worthy of Patti Smith.

Other noteworthy change-of-pace efforts this time out include the romantic fantasy “Let’s Name Our Children” and the intriguing “Come On Hey Hey.” “The End Of The Party” has a theatrical ambience and just might be a political fable. The Handcuffs will no doubt be performing a number of these songs during their set at PravdaFest, which takes place on the weekend of  June 24 and 25 at the Sketchbook Brewing Company in Skokie.