SEPTEMBER 2007 CD REVIEWS

THE:HAIR : DISCO/RETRO (SINGLE)

Ever swaggering, ever cocky, increasingly cheeky and oozing more confidence and charm with each stage of their career The:Hair have released again through Louder Than Bombs Records. Sporting an obvious high-hat driven high energy Ska shuffle motif Disco/Retro bowls along in their trademark jerky push/pull manner. Messy flanged guitars chopping in and out, recitative and screamed vocals and an easily identifyable hook (denying their passion for neither Disco nor Retro) make this an entertaining and fresh listening. Featuring a lovely kitch coda too. I don’t believe a word they say though. By the sounds of it and how they’ve cross bred the genres, I reckon they love both of the above-named styles - they just want to stir some beats up and get your body jumping. dean saint john

Testtone3 – Fuelled By Substance

TestTone3 are a supreme mixture of live flair and technical precision. Unfortunately this will be their their first and only release and it purely reflects the very substance of the band. “Goin’ Down” is a prime example of arena quality rock music; buzzing guitars backed by pounding electronic beats and vocals akin to Brian Molko of Placebo. The chorus is simply epic and the synth shaken’ melody will stir your blood cells inspiring them to do the conga round and then round again. “Run Now” will make you immediately think of the genre-bending superpowers Basement Jaxx. Fast paced beats mix with smooth vocals to create a concoction that is fit for any kind of dancefloor. The great thing about this band is that they change pace and tone so easily. The sound breaks and starts keeping us guessing and wondering which musical elements will be used next. “Feel Love” is a Gorrilaz nodding softer effort, allowing for the strong electronica influence to come across, this is one for you to chill out to, or at least it starts off that way. About two minutes and thirty in, everything gets a little faster and we go to complete rave madness. It works well, complex, intricate and dance-worthy. While lead vocalist Adam shouts “Listen up to our rock and roll” on final track “Rock n’ Roll Song,” the synths provide hard beats and the guitars betray older Hendrix influences in that they are completely brash and wild. This song totally defines the band aesthetic, they are never one consistency or ingredient. They are in fact the “hundreds and thousands” of the York music collective: colourful, way too full of sugar and tasty in any kind of environment. They know that wherever they go, they will go loud and proud, with some serious “bleeping rock” for the masses. dom smith

[Digi]core : Synaptic Decay

[Digi]Core have been at the forefront of York’s music scene for some time now, and after winning York Fibbers BOTB in 2006 the four piece look poised for big things. This album tells the simple story of a man as he goes insane, an original idea for a “concept” album then. Opening with “Fatal Drug” their full on Industrial Metal onslaught takes no prisoners. Powerful drumming is met with searing guitars a’la Pitchshifter while the vocals are bold, violent and tormented. Creatively, [Digi]core’s sound is a unique melding of electronica entwined with brutal but intelligent metal styling’s, and that is shown constantly throughout this new album. The disk has an infectious overtone and this will appease rock fans and rivetheads alike when it comes to getting friendly in a mosh pit. Each track sounds different in terms of tone, melody and degrees of intensity. Indeed, the bands most varied work comes in the form of title track “Synaptic Decay”, here the band bring a beautiful synthetic orchestra in to create a contrast to follow on from the fast paced hardcore sound of the opening minutes. Remember when you give this one a listen (and if you consider yourself “alternative” whatever you like…you should) that “God Is In The Machine.” dom smith

IN SO FAR : DEMO

‘The Fall’ is a song I enjoyed immensely. There is a catchy addictive melody being played throughout the verse and there is a definite upbeat feel being responded to in the lyrics “when I see you fall I know that this is not the end”. ‘Drowning’ initially provides a catchy and positive vibe through drums and guitars working well together. The lyrics are emotional yet the progressively heavier guitar riffs also give it some anger - this is a track to certainly get some heads banging. The guitarist pitches in with some killer riffs and she also has a chance to go mental in one solo. This standout track fulfilled the element I believed to be missing from their music: that ability to change from emo to rock to punk. Final track ‘Choker’ brings a lyrical tonality of Incubus shaken up with a fusion of Billy Talent. Once again an awesome riff is intertwined in this song and, mixed with the almost emo, screamo lyrical touches near the end, it makes a good emo sounding rock track. ‘In So Far’ are a fusion of emo through lyrics and the guitar riffs and drums forming a rock punk feel.
a nonymous

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styrofoamsarcophagus : DEMO

The work of a single minded man in Derby, I think the one thing on his mind was rust when he created this brutal and at times un-intelligable demo. ‘Systems Crash’. A wall of noise. It’s not big, but it is clever. Using lyrics as a weapon to get across the message, simple brief phrases a la Combichrist sear into our skull: “Something is wrong here”. ‘Falling’ by contrast is haunting and moody and ‘Carnival’ again takes us into a mesh fence of static and noise, our limbs get caught and we are pulled apart. This stuff is just too weird. Lord knows what this guy actually wears for clothes, animal skins? The Blood of the innocent anyone? ‘An incident With Goblins And Chainsaws’ is a noisy bugger and seems slightly pointless next to ‘Shut Up’ which though again is particularly repetitive, will be stuck in your brain for hours. ‘Life’ is a brief and boring stop gap to the interesting and eerily catchy ‘Purge:Destroy’ which will make your ears bleed. Final track ‘End’ again offers the soundtrack to a disturbed mind…except I think this guys on the level. He seemed nice when he sent me the disk… dom smith

RAG’N’BONE : RAG’N’BONE

“Badman” opens the demo, it’s a smooth jazz and funk infused number, slow and sultry. The drums here give this a slight rock and ska tinge. Its like Phish and Keller Williams chilled Stateside rock has found a home in the North of England. “Bye-Bye” is a romantic song: the stylish guitars and poppy drums betray the ideas portrayed within the lyrics. This one is an inspiration to all men who are slaves to their lady. “You really crossed that line, jumping on top of some friends of mine.” Intelligent lyricisms and a cutting song lead into the light-hearted and smooth “Finale.” This one is big and bold and will have you dancing all night long shouting “Just call the Rag N’Bone,” swing those hips! This is feel good stuff. “Polka” offers a change of pace, and showcases the bands penchant for blues, quick drums compliment the slick vocals. They are on a mission to make you move those feet people… Final song on this disk is “Sexy Sinourita,” one for the ladies no doubt, a Spanish influence over-rides this. It’s as seductive as it sounds, but well delivered and will be a great one to see performed. Its part Santana and part Chillis. These guys have only been around for a few months, but they already ooze confidence. Whether it is misplaced, time will surely tell but for now, watch out fella’s the R&B are out for your girls. dom smith