Thee Sinseers: Love Stories [Album Review]

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Thee Sinceers – Love Stories

Love Stories

Thee Sinseers — 2026

ReleasedSeptember 18
Label Colemine Records
Produced By Joseph Quinones
Runtime38 min / 11 tracks

Album Review
Thee Sinseers • Love Stories • Chicano Soul Revival

“Thee Sinseers make every heartbreak, devotion, and complicated relationship on Love Stories feel like its own miniature soul symphony.”

“If love was made for everyone / Then everyone would win at the game of love” sings Joey Quinones on “Oh Love,” the opening track on Thee Sinseers’ new album Love Stories. Notice a pattern? The band’s second long-player for Colemine Records may not be a concept album, but each of its eleven tracks touches on love in some way: devoted love, lost love, estranged love, love for family, and everything in between. It’s romantic, but not in a sappy or naive way, and the band buoys Quinones’ heartfelt lyrics with lush, sympathetic arrangements that recall the golden days of West Coast soul.

Produced by Quinones and mixed by Monophonics frontman and Colemine mainstay Kelly Finnigan, Love Stories evokes Thee Sinseers’ Los Angeles roots perfectly. Horns, strings, and backing vocals add color to the core guitar/bass/keys/drums lineup, creating mini soul symphonies that effortlessly conjure up faded, soft-focus images of L.A. neighborhoods in the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s. If their last album, 2024’s Sinseerly Yours, felt like an evolution from their early 45s, Love Stories feels more like a refinement, polishing their sound but without losing any of the emotional urgency they’ve always cultivated. There’s plenty for longtime fans of Thee Sinseers to love in this album’s grooves, and for newcomers it’s the perfect place to get acquainted with the band’s signature sound.

Pivotal Tracks

“Oh Love”
I’m a sucker for a good opening track, and this one has everything you could want—a soulful melody, lush harmonies, and a vibe that perfectly sets the mood for the rest of the album.
“There She Goes”
It’s the little touches that make “There She Goes” something special: the fuzz guitar licks, the background vocal harmonies, the sweeping strings, but most of all, Quinones’ pleading, emotional performance on the mic.
“Crybaby”
This track initially caught my attention because the opening chords and arrangement are a dead ringer for the Beverly & John Martyn song “The Ocean,” but “Crybaby” is a worthy tune in its own right, with a melancholic vocal and cinematic strings that give it an epic sense of scope.

Artists with Similar Fire

Thee Sacred Souls
This San Diego-based trio shares a lot of musical DNA with their neighbors to the north, particularly their sweet harmonies and retro soul vibe.
Aaron Frazer
Joey Quinones’ thoughtful, often introspective lyrics and laid-back, slow-burn tunes feel akin to the approach Frazer takes on his solo albums (when he’s not behind the mic and drum kit with Durand Jones & The Indications).
Thee Midniters
Thee Sinseers’ sound owes a clear debt to the original Chicano soul/garage rock pioneers, an influence they wear proudly on their sleeves (just compare the album cover of 2024’s Sinseerly Yours to Thee Midniters’ 1965 self-titled LP!).

The Fire Note Rating: 4

The Fire Note Spin
4 out of 5

Links: Facebook Instagram Bandcamp Colemine Records
Review History: Sinseerly Yours (2024)

Simon Workman has loved rock n' roll ever since his dad made him Beatles and Beach Boys mix tapes as a kid. These days his musical interests have a wide range, though he still has a strong connection to the music of the 60s and 70s. He lives in Dayton and teaches English at Sinclair Community College.

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