Last year Bury St Edmunds based alt rock trio Horse Party released their debut album, Cover Your Eyes to critical acclaim and airplay from the likes of Steve Lamacq, Lauren Laverne (both 6Music) and John Kennedy (XFM) among others, the band also performed across the UK taking in the Latitude Festival along the way.
The band follow up last years successes and continue to build momentum with double A-sided single Out Of Sight/Receiver, a fantastic one-two knockout combination, both featuring the band’s razor sharp hooks and attitude fueled menace.
Out Of Sight opens with an infectious chugging riff before Ellie delivers a tough yet seductive croon before guitarist and co-vocalist Seymour and drummer Shannon Hope step on the power, for a glorious chant along vocal hook, bringing to mind the early serrated sound of PJ Harvey.
Receiver is no less impressive, Seymour takes over lead vocal duties but the turn of over power is still very much evident, as the band move through their gears, pealing off yet another contagious flurry of riotous riffs alongside a repetitive, mantra like lead vocal and a handful of icy cool harmonies as Horse Party deliver another slice of deadly infectious alternative rock.
There’s no beating around the bush here, Horse Party offer up melodic, hook-laden short, sharp slices of attitude, full of vim and vigour, what more could you possibly want?
Worcestershire based, three-piece Son Of A Lumberjack are something of a new name to me, but having listened and devoured their debut single, All That I Have Seen, (produced by Rhys Downing) I sure hope to hear a great deal more in the near future.
The track opens with a flurry of drums and cymbals, before a melodic, yet punchy riff cuts through the furious bombardment, whilst a bass growls somewhere in the background. The vocals drop and oddly bring to mind those of Eddie Vedder only with perhaps a little more anguish thrown in for good measure, whilst the band threaten with an orgy of serrated riffs and bombastic beats, as the track finishes in much the same way it began, with a further frantic drum assault.
As introductions serve, All That I Have Seen, is a short, memorable burst of energetic taunt rock that leaves you exhilarated and baying for more.
Writing reviews sometimes isn’t easy you know, you turn a CD with the view to pass judgement and straight from the off the sound emitted doesn’t captivate like it should, maybe you’re not in the mood for a certain style, or from the opening chord you’re left with the nagging feeling of “heard it all before”, or maybe it’s just too obvious, there’s nothing new. And then there’s the other side of the coin, those rare releases that from the first utterance you’re left open-mouthed, there’s an explainable wonderment, or you find yourself so immersed, that you realise you’re still staring at an empty white screen with that bloody curser blinking back at you, mocking you because once again you’ve been left speechless (or should that be wordless) and that’s after hitting the repeast button ten times on the trot. Pieces is one of those rare latter cases, a release that compels, dumbfounds, intrigues and is an absolute bugger to review without hyperventilating.
So here I am yet again, trying to describe the debut EP by Merseyside singer-songwriter John Joseph Brill and still I’m trying to not dribble in appreciation. I want to try to articulate the passion, the soul, the fire and the brimstone, that John summons on each and every track, how that this isn’t the sound of one man strumming, whilst crying into his pint, instead Pieces is moody, powerful and poetic, all delivered in a weary, weathered and above believable voice.
The title track opens proceedings with howling guitar, viola and deep penetrating drums, before John reveals that glorious grizzled croon, bringing to mind Lanegan, Cohen or Cave to create a dark brooding combination of alternative folk, but with hooks, oh beautiful nagging hooks that pull you back for more.
Former single Muscle & Bone follows and is perhaps even better, again that menacing viola is present and that frazzled baritone but song builds from an almost tender folky number to a more bombastic proposition by the songs finale, documenting John’s struggle with the human condition quite brilliantly, during the tracks duration.
Golden Kids is a quieter, but yet no less mesmeric track based around a simplistic piano motif, John’s mournful croon and a ghostly, pulsating beat, all complimented with delicious bursts of instrumentation and a hook-laden chorus that catches you blissfully unaware but remains days after the initial spin. John completes the four-track affair with the sparse, fragile and beautiful Sleeping Beast, a bewitching, yet subtle number where his beaten, half whispered vocals are very much the focus.
And again I’m left struggling to find the words to sum up Pieces, the EP is a bewitching introduction to a poetic singer-songwriter or perhaps a much needed document attempting to sum up the human condition, touching on those issues that we’re unable to articulate ourselves, morality, principles, self awareness, etc, John Joseph Brill communicates in song what we will never manage to murmur.
Before I begin this review I should say right from the onset that I’m something of a fan of Sam Genders and his previous work under both the Diagrams monicker as well his work with Tunng, so I guess before hitting play my expectations for Chromatics, were pretty high.
Since Sam’s debut album as Diagrams, 2012’s Black Light, he’s upped sticks from his previous London home and settled in Sheffield and with the move brings new friendships, relationships and indeed influences and Chromatics reflects all of that and more. Whilst the previous album fizzed with electronics, programmed beats and funk grooves, the new album has an altogether more organic sound, as Sam collaborates with a number of musicians to create a rich tapestry, combining folk, indie and pop elements to dazzling effect.
Chromatics fizzles into life with Phantom Power, a track that begins with a combination of strummed acoustic guitar and keyboards alongside Sam’s delicate soulful croon before reaching a wonderfully infectious pop-laden hook, that’s again reprised throughout the duration of the delightful three and half minute opener.
Gentle Morning Song, showcases Sam’s use of subtle electronics to pepper his material, layering effects and keyboards alongside electric guitar and distorted harmonies to form a wonderful, dreamy slice of indie-pop again with that all important vocal hook present and correct. The title track is a gentle, lulling, folky number that’s fused with a morse code like coda, bubbling away beneath the song’s surface, whilst Sam build’s a glorious keyboard led melody around his softly caressed vocals.
Both Shapes and Dirty Broken Bliss bring something new to the mix, with the former adding bird song, viola and wordless siren like harmonies as Sam offers a psychedelic tinged opus, whilst in direct contrast Dirty Broken Bliss, is an addictive, pulsating synth-led slab of electronic indie pop that could have been lifted directly out of Apples In Stereo’s songbook. The Light And The Noise could have been beamed straight from the sixties, with it’s phased vocals and retro melody, whilst the albums closing number, Just A Hair’s Breadth sees Genders crooning over an almost orchestral arrangement, again showcasing his widescreen approach to writing and arranging.
Chromatics hasn’t just matched my expectations, it’s blown them out the water, the eleven track affair is the first must have album of 2015, it’s a diverse, seductive and intoxicating look into the eclectic psyche of one of music’s modern day mavericks. Sam Genders has more realised and captivating ideas on Chromatics, than most groups muster in a lifetime.
Rhythm & Booze Rating 10
www.diagramsmusic.co.uk
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5 December, 2014
Your Favorite Enemies-Between Illness And Migration
Your Favorite Enemies maybe something of a new name on this side of the pond but over in their native Canada, the six-piece have managed to hit number 2 on iTunes on the day of release of their previous recording, whilst the band have also shifted 60,000 physical copies of their past releases to date, which is impressive when you think that the band take their musical cues from the likes of Fugazi, Sonic Youth and Mars Volta among others.
The band have already made their first steps in this country with a high profile tour in support of seminal post rock legends ……And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead taking in Glasgow, Manchester and London during their four date stint.
Listening to this ten track affair you can imagine that Your Favorite Enemies may well found favour with the Trail Of Dead crowd, as they combine lo-fi post hardcore, evocative vocals and dense bouts of feedback to create a gloriously wide reaching racket that should appeal to post rockers and abrasive alternative rock fans alike.
The album opens with a short introduction entitled Satsuki Yami, where the band sharpen their instruments, building up to a howling feedback enriched crescendo before unleashing the first track proper, Empire Of Sorrows, a six minute plus epic that mixes spoken-word lyrics with jarring banks of dense instrumentation, punished drums and waves of guitar abuse to create an unsettling yet compelling introduction to the bands sound.
Following on, the band deliver the stunning A View From Within, with a somewhat serrated and swirling, shoegaze inspired guitar sound that could have been lifted straight from the grooves of Loveless (My Bloody Valentine), whilst Alex Foster’s vocals are more of a refrained hush, adding a welcome, melodic side to the cacophony of sound. Where Did We Lose Each Other is different again, featuring an instantly infectious guitar hook, vocal harmonies and a glorious chorus refrain, as the band impress with a fine slice of shimmering alternative rock.
Under A Stretching Skyline proves to be another highlight, the seven minute track opens with the band creating a storm of driven guitars and crashing drums before Alex delivers a vulnerable touching lead vocal whilst keyboard player Miss Isabel adds barely audible whispers peppering the track to create a softer layer, near hidden beneath the waves of glacial guitar work.
The album finishes with the stunning Muets Aux Temps Des Amours, a brooding melodic number with both male and female spoken word vocals, a delicate crooned lead from Alex and restrained shimmering guitar and keyboard work, completing an intriguing and diverse album on a dreamy high.
Between Illness And Migration may well take it’s cues from the likes of Sonic Youth, Fugazi, My Bloody Valentine and perhaps Shellac, but Your Favorite Enemies have very much mastered their own unique and compelling sound straddling the divide of abrasive post punk and glistening shoegaze, a contagious outing from start to finish.