A third guitarist changes a band’s angle. Santa Claws put that fact at the centre of “Sands Of Time“. The Brittany five-piece return with a self-produced second album.

Crunchy guitars, close arrangements and rich analogue texture fill its frame. It draws on 1990s rock energy. However, the current lineup brings a clear point of view.

This “Sands Of Time” album review starts with the expanded formation: five players, three guitars and a record built to make detail count.

Greg Aubert founded Santa Claws as a power trio and now fronts the group on lead vocals, guitars and keyboards. Antoine Montgaudon adds guitars, keyboards, backing vocals and arrangements.

Teddy Moisan brings bass and backing vocals, Julien Pinel plays drums, and Stéphane Kérihuel joins them on guitar. Kérihuel turns the group into a five-piece.

His guitar work adds depth, counterpoint and dynamic energy. That shift gives Sands of Time a useful internal tension. The album draws on a guitar band’s direct force.

Meanwhile, separate lines move beside each other.

Santa Claws did not arrive here by taking the quick route. The group rebuilt after line-up changes, wrote at a distance during the pandemic and tested new work on the road.

Their live EP Echoes came from a performance at Petit Écho de la Mode. A total power outage cut it short. It has the odd drama of a silent-film reel stopping halfway through a scene.

Such moments matter because they frame this album as work from a band that has met interruption and kept moving.

The group made Sands of Time independently at its La Chapelle-Neuve studio. Montgaudon mixed the album, while Christophe Chavanon mastered it to analogue tape at Studio Kerwax.

That division of labour keeps authorship close to the band while giving the finished record a carefully chosen final process. Santa Claws also celebrated the release at Kerwax with an intimate live-to-tape showcase.

A full concert film directed by Melody Aubert is planned for 2027, so this chapter still has another scene ahead.

The album’s stated building blocks are clear: crunchy guitars, intricate arrangements, analogue grain and melodic writing. Together, they point to production that values touch as much as scale.

Drums and bass provide the group’s rhythmic floor. Three guitars add mass and counterpoint around the songs. Aubert’s lead-vocal role sits within that frame, supported by a line-up that also includes keyboards and backing vocals.

Rather than chasing a smooth finish, Santa Claws use tape and live performance as part of the record’s character.

The Beatles, Radiohead, Oasis, Supergrass and The Breeders form the group’s set of reference points. Santa Claws draw melodic care, experimental tension, swagger and noisy-pop bite from those pointers.

The result is a shared grammar, not imitation. It lets classic Britpop cues meet rougher alt rock pop. For anyone tracking new music from European independent rock groups, that is a useful invitation.

Sands of Time also gains force from its patience. The band made room for stages, residencies and remote writing. A reshaped rhythm section preceded the second LP.

The title suggests movement, but the group answer it with craft, close collaboration and a performance-first instinct. With the Kerwax film still to come, this release feels ready to open outward.

Press play for the guitar pressure now, then watch where Santa Claws take the formation next.