Mount Fabric

Threads 

Hairy Wolf Records

Out Now

Rating: 3/5

Someone's listened to their Muse b-sides. So there's a new Mount Fabric EP, Threads, and this time they've apparently decided to ditch all of their excess influences, for the simple fact is this whole affair sounds exactly like either Muse or Radiohead.

Take track one, 'The Lightning Fork'; the pre-chorus is 'Sober' from Muse's Showbiz, and the chorus is 'Lucky' from Radiohead's Ok Computer. Now personally I'm going to forgive that, as I rather enjoy MF, but I can see a lot of people (even those not initially turned off by the Muse/Radiohead comparison) that will switch off after realising that.

Anyway, the former being true, 'Squelettes' is a guilty-pleasure of an upbeat number, 'ROC' the token ballad/atmospheric piece, and 'Cortisol' the more 'experimental' electronic track; think '13 Step'. Perhaps it sounds like I'm being a little unfair here, but let the record show that nowhere did I say these tracks were bad – they're actually all very good (with the exception of closer 'Fault', which is rather too close to '90s adult-oriented pop-rock for my taste) – but they aren't original, and it's not unfair of me to observe that it's going to be a deal-breaker for some. 

Vasco Da Gama

Vasco Da Gama

Paypertiger

Out Now

Rating: 4.5/5 

On 'Nada Mas' the spaz starts immediately (can I say that?), with a set of manic harmonies before pleasantly strong vocals and reverb-drenched harmonies enter the mix. The overall effect is probably the mildest verse on the EP, and it's rather unfortunate that peoples' first exposure to it will come in autumn, for it's got an undeniable summer-pop lilt to it.

'Long Ships, Massive Hands' meanwhile has an almost power-pop vibe to it; I'm reminded of 'Tomorrow's Papers' by Luther Russell (bizarrely enough), and more so than the previous track the drums are allowed to coast to the fore in the composition, highlighting that truism of math- that it just isn't possible without a truly exceptional drummer. Though on the EP the excessively trebly guitars aren't fully counterweighted by the bass, live this song is an absolute belter, and it's definitely one of those tracks that grows substantially better once you've contextualised it by seeing Vasco play a show.

While we're on the subject, let's just deal with their band name too, because it's fucking awesome. I mean, besides the fact that it's one of those band names that I really wish I'd thought up first, it somehow manages to pretty solidly evoke the sheer bipolarity of what Vasco are trying to achieve with their songs.

Their grand math-pop gesture is Guts Ahoy!, which sounds actually rather like Wot Gorilla?; rather it's the EP closer, 'Teach the Young Team' that sets the template for their future success.

Complicated and catchy, obtuse in arrangement, it's nevertheless packed with pop hooks and great melodies. There's no question of it being their 'dumb pop song', or something they should be embarrassed by; for simply constructing something so brilliant is bloody hard. It's almost too cool, too brilliant for its own good, but I can't hold that against Vasco. I'll be humming it for weeks to come, and if you check it out I'm sure you will be too.

My prediction: an album of tracks like 'Young Team' and 'Long Ships...' and Vasco will be huge. In the meantime, slake your thirst with this exceptional EP and get excited about what's yet to come from this thrilling young band. 

Get it from Paypertiger here. Check out Vasco on Facebook here.

Blindness

Confessions (EP)

Rating: 4/5

 

I have to admit, I wasn't totally sold on this EP at first. Of course I mean only until I'd heard the break at about three minutes in of track two, 'Broken'. After that I was sold.

 

So first let's dispense with the soundbite PR bit (and admittedly probably the reason this ended up on my doorstep); the driving force behind the band is Debbie Smith, who was the live guitarist for Curve. Naturally then, as you'd expect there's some similarity with Dean Garcia's post-Curve project, SPC ECO, although Blindness' sound is notably darker, more in tune with Curve's pseudo-goth asthetic than the joyous dream pop of SPC's recent Big Fat World EP.

 

Besides that (and not a reference to Curve in sight), what do Blindness sound like? Well, on track one it's driving dark shoegaze melded with the atmospherics of dark ambient- think Portishead's more unsettling moments- and the pop electronica sensibilities of recent Metric. In fact, however inappropriate that last reference point may appear, it's one that as a listener I kept referring to. 'Confessions' has a drum track that even quite reminds of 'Help, I'm Alive', though one doubts that Debbie Smith owns many Metric records.

 

Though the guitar noisily clawing its way to the fore on 'Broken' is my favourite individual moment, the closer 'No One Counts', with echoes of the increasing band dynamic of Massive Attack circa 100^th Window (and specifically the guitar figures of 'What Your Soul Sings') is the finest individual track. At only three tracks it's a little light on running length, but on the basis of this their next release will still have to be exceptional for Blindness to truly stand out, good though it is. 

Crosses

EP

Self-Released

Out Now

Rating: 4/5

I remember once my bandmate admitted whilst very drunk that he had a great secret. Casting an eye this way and that, he lowered his voice before speaking. “Dude,” he said in a confessional tone, “I think I like Team Sleep more than Deftones.” He stared into his drink as if it held some sublime wisdom.

Well, I think my Last.fm would testify to the fact that I love the Deftones, but I think I'd have to agree; much of what I love about the Deftones is present (in a roundabout way) on Team Sleep, and my favourite Deftones album, Saturday Night Wrist, arguably was heavily influenced by Chino's experience of working with the musical styles he flirted with on Team Sleep.

Anyway, whilst I had high hopes for Team Sleep coming back with a second record, it looks like that's not going to happen, which is a damn shame. However, there's a silver lining; namely that he had the time to hook up with some of the dudes from Far (admittedly a band I'm not that familiar with) and form Crosses (or †††, if you prefer).

Essentially a more electronic iteration of all of Chino's avant-garde urges, apart from a fatter bass tone Crosses have much in common with Team Sleep. The electronica of opener 'This is a Trick' is balanced out by the dream-pop 'Option', reminiscent of Curve or SPC ECO, while 'Bermuda Locket' has a little bit of Smashing Pumpkins' 'Eye' about it, and with a Corgan vocal could easily be a track from their Adore-era output.

The highlight of the set though is 'Thholyghst', which is kind of a mash-up of 'Tomb of Liega' and 'Live from the Stage' from Team Sleep. It's menacing and atmospheric, and when it finally cuts loose, Chino's voice soars above washes of triumphant, Machina-era Pumpkins industrial fuzz. It's joyous, sending shivers down the spine as it brings a smile to the face.

The question is, with this under his belt, can Chino put a foot wrong? Well, yes. There's no physical release for the EP yet, and no news of an album to follow, which leaves me frankly with a thirst that cannot be slaked.

While I wallow in existential angst, I'd suggest you download a copy for free from their Facebook page. 

Kid For Today

Are You Friendly?

Pipco Collective

Out Now

Rating: 4.5/5

The first time I heard of Kid For Today was when Charlie Barnes nodded in bandmate Josh (AKA Kid For Today)'s direction and told me to check his stuff out. “You'll fucking love it” he assured me with a mischievous grin. 

Now, before I lapse into some kind of semi-autobiographical prose dross let's talk about Are You Friendly?. Well, the first and most obvious thing to say is that yeah, I do fucking love it. Like a kind of hyper lo-fi Beta Band (see 'Hello Mr. Magpie), with swatches of Nice Nice and even Meursault ('Sticks') about it, KFT's music roughly inhabits that area usually branded 'folktronica', though 'Keep on Drowning' reminds more of '5/4' from Gorillaz and 'River Rocks' smacks of well, anything that Beck has ever done (sorry but Beck's stuff does all sound the same). 

The eclecticism of the execution however is this EP's true strength. Morphing from lo-fi folk to world music with jazz or funk flavours, it's at times like a 21st century take on Paul Simon's solo material (see the 'Ocean Song' passage of 'Keep on Drowning'); however many genres and instruments are tackled, it's still somehow elusively, transiently locked into a folk sensibility even as its many moods shift with it, passage by passage. 

For me, the best track is 'Green Lung'; I've always had a soft spot for distorted drums, and the track itself is a pleasing version of Peter Gabriel's multi-vocal-harmonied '80s excursions into African choral music as imagined by Engineers or North Atlantic Oscillation. Both 'Cell Count' and 'Clean Coloured Wire' have a similar electronic warble counterpointed by Secret Machines-style drums, and 'Green Lung' is consequently one 2:47 trip through a good seventy per cent of the things that I fucking love about music. 

Ultimately though, you can't boil Are You Friendly? down to a single track as that simply doesn't do it justice. If you're going to listen to acoustic guitars, fuck Benjamin Francis Leftwich's facile Radio-2-drivetime-mid-life-crisis bullshit and immerse yourself in something of more substance: this.  

Amplifier
The Astronaut Dismantles HAL EP

Ampcorp/SPV

Rating: 4/5

From this Extended Play, the follow-up to their début Amplifier, one might never have guessed at the problems bubbling below the surface. Granted, their début had a troubled birth, but arrive it did, being later re-released on SPV. The Astronaut Dismantles HAL, however, was their first set of original material for the label, and it builds on the melodic inclinations of the band showcased on the first record, without sacrificing any of the music's complexity, or indeed length. The six (seven if you include secret track 'Scarecrows') tracks are as long as an album, and there's a gratifying cohesion and fluency to the package as a whole. 

From the very first note in 'Continuum', Amplifier play the space-rock card, with Sel's voice staying subdued in tone before he explodes forth with the perplexing 'chorus' break of “JUST LISTEN!”. In fact, despite its substantial run-time, there's something joyously pop about this cut, evidenced on the surreal middle-eight vocal crescendo of “que sera sera, whatever will be, will be!” where once again vocals cut the guitar wash and magnificently ride atop Amplifier's multi-amp squall. 

Other highlights include the Zeppelin-esque stomp of 'Into The Space Age' and riff-heavy single 'Everyday Combat', which has since passed into fan-favourite territory, frequently clamoured for at shows. For me though it's the aforementioned 'Scarecrows' that has the currency to go head-to-head with 'Continuum' and 'Everyday Combat'. An acoustic-led number, it shows Amplifier thoroughly out of their comfort zone, stripped-back and at some of their most emotionally affecting. They wouldn't employ an acoustic in the same way until The Octopus' 'Oscar Night', and even then the subtle atmospherics achieved on 'Scarecrows' would be lost. 

Though Insider undoubtedly had its moments, it's hard to see how Amplifier ended up there based on this release; stories of label pressure, time- and budget- constraints aren't hard to dredge up, so if anything it once again vindicates their decision to go The Octopus alone, as if the quality of that album weren't reason enough on its own. The Astronaut Dismantles HAL is a worthy, indeed essential addition to Amplifier's body of work, and it is too often overlooked for being 'just' an EP. Call it a 'mini-album', call it what you like; just don't make the mistake of missing out on it. 

Wot Gorilla?

New Arrival

Self-Released

Out Now

Rating: 4.5/5

After catching their set at Live at Leeds I immediately got my hands on Wot Gorilla's work to date; that is to say, their self-titled debut EP and this, their second. Possibly the only downside to what is otherwise a nigh-perfect recording is this- 'Fear of Flying', the opener, is by far the best track on here. Not only that, but out of the three tracks and an interlude, the second strongest is also the second track, '3 DAB's and a Chang', leaving the closer, 'Shoes for Traction' to seem more functional where on a lesser EP it might be a stand-out.

Sooner or later I'm going to have to stop saying this because I will have actually learned a thing or two about math-rock, but for the moment I still know little enough to confidently say that as far as I know, this is as good as it gets. Make sure you also check out their first effort as well, if only for the excellent 'We Go Way Back Like Like Spinal Cords and Car Seats' and '6 Double 5 3 2 1', the latter a track name which almost literally has math in it (ha ha). For me their greatest moments are when they go from the most abstract, angular material to the biggest guilty-pleasure pop rock; witness the “was that the engines cutting out?” middle eight of 'Fear of Flying' to get an idea. Though this may be Wot Gorilla's greatest weapon, they use it sparingly and it consequently never gets old.

The final verdict: highly entertaining, quite possibly future-proof rock.

[Both WG? EPs are now free to download; use the links above]

In Casino Out

Victims & Vultures Alike

Out Now

Rating: 5/5

 

If Shields was the sound of a band mixing a plethora of alternative rock influences through a Yourcodenameis:milo™ blender, then Victims & Vultures Alike is the sound of them adding a shot of White Belt Yellow Tag, two measures of awesome and finally “kicking the engine to overdrive”, as I'm sure Sel Belamir would say.[1]

 

For whilst this is still definitely the sound of In Casino Out, complete with the obvious YCNI:M, Biffy and 'Size comparisons, there's something just elusively different about this second outing. I can't pin it down to any particular riff or instrument, so I'm tempted to put it down to something like a more fixed line-up, for it feels like it's the band dynamics that are the make-or-break here.

The songs themselves are more of a mixed bunch as well; more atmospheric than Shields, there are backing vocals, subtle synth sweeps, and on the exceptional 'Hospital Drama Season Finale' even what I would call (shock horror) 'pretty' melodic riffs. That's just it really; where Shields was all top-drawer rock, it never really made the emotional impact that to be honest is where a lot of music really takes flight.

 

No such problems on V & V, however; from the word 'go' it's heart-on-the-sleeve vocals clawing their way to the top of cascading riffs. Opener 'Light from the Cars' is the closest we get to early ICO, but still manages a pretty sweeping chorus. 'Windows' is, oddly enough, slightly reminiscent of 'Window' off of Grey Noise, White Lies by Exeter; that is to say, it's monumental space-rock in the vein of Fantastic Planet-era Failure, which can only be good. In fact, if you listen carefully you might hear Failure again in the chorus of 'Rocky V', but maybe that's just me chasing after space-grunge ghosts.

 

The highlight of the set is doubtless the breathlessly brilliant 'Empires Expired'. From the verse you could be forgiven for thinking it'd somehow been leftover from Shields, but the pre-chorus wrong foots you with effects and catchy rhythmic devices that leave you utterly unprepared for the sheer sonic assault that is the chorus. Oh no, make no mistake: they are not fucking around this time. If you're a fan of heavy rock and this doesn't get your head banging then you need to get it examined, seriously.

 

[1] I'm not certain that Sel would quote his own lyrics in casual conversation, but fair play to him if he does. 

Frank Turner - I Am Disappeared

No longer the ragged singer from Million Dead that with a muttered 'fuck it' began playing anywhere that would have him (in the process forging an enviable roots fanbase and live reputation), Frank's now got his sights fixed on the big time.

It thus comes as little suprise that the vitriolic wordplay of 'Long Live the Queen' is out, and pianos, strings and more pedestrian lyrics are in. It's not bad, but it's hardly even up to recent 'I Still Believe', introduced live with “this is about the things I believe in...guitars, bass, drums and poetry.” Frank, come back!

Mazes - Most Days

From their early days peddling Dinosaur Jr., esque slacker fuzz around Manchester, Mazes have truly grown, to now apparently include knocking off the Jr.'s videos ('Over It', anyone?). On 'Most Days', they've also upped the tempo as compared to earlier efforts 'Cenotaphs' and the brilliant 'Bowie Knives', to great effect.

Seriously though, all of that 'this isn't original but it's great' is horseshit; this is a fantastic bloody song, thick with attitude (Raditude?) and catchy melodies. If anything, it's actually a little reminiscent of early Ash, but I'm not sure if anybody but me still thinks that's a good thing.

Pteropilot

Pilots and Starlets EP

Out Now

Rating: 4.5/5

I know what you're thinking- another fucking band from Liverpool? Well, if there were less great bands from there, I'd have fewer to cover... and it's not like I haven't given Manchester a look in; the best we've currently got to offer (Black Market Serotonin, Trojan Horse, The Narrows, Patterns, Cyril Snear, From the Kites of San Quentin, Charlie Barnes [honourary Manc], Casino Zone, Advances, With That Knife, the Modern Painters, The Steals and Air Cav) have all been covered on here, and that's not even including the bands I only quite like, just the ones I really fucking like.

Anyway, on to Pteropilot. Another band from the ICO/ATQO/Battleships scene, this is probably the most accessible of the lot. Yep, there are still riffs aplenty, but there's also a bunch of really melodic stuff in the mix courtesy of delay-and-reverb heavy guitars and occasional bursts of electronics, or even (on occasion) strings. The vocals are for the most part quite restrained and buried in the mix, but given the more post-rock stylings (I'm not fucking going to say 'cinematic' or 'epic' because I'd like to believe I'm not that much of a hack) of this band, this works within the confines of the overall aesthetic. Though the verses are often quite complex and dense, for the most part the choruses are big, chordy, and well welcome for any fans of any music that came out of Seattle around 1990 (amongst whose ranks I definitely consider myself).

So, individual tracks. The Biggest Chorus of the EP award goes to 'Harakiri', while Most Structurally Interesting goes to 'Wolf Cries Wolf'. Most Catchy Main Riff for Fans of Zwan goes to the opener, 'Each the Others World Entire', and Most Bloody Massive and Sprawling definitely goes to the closer, 'The Next of Amber', which if I'm honest has a little bit of 'Music for a Nurse' about it- this obviously is no bad thing. Coincidentally it's also not a bad accompaniment to a train journey across the country, which is the setting for my scribblings today.

As I find is the case with most of the Liverpool bands I've heard, the production values are top-drawer throughout, and all of the subtle little tricks of filters or deep-in-the-mix guitars, vocal yelps, male-female vocal harmonies et al are definitely not lost on this listener. The attention to detail is fucking fantastic, and as one of those sentimental fucks that loves the album format, I especially love the feeling of being taken on a journey, of musical progression, that underpins the tracklisting and development of ideas within the narrative of the EP. It may be comparatively short, but insofar as a twenty-five minute running time can be truly immersive, it is. 

 

Aulos

EP IC

Out Now

Rating: 4/5

When you write predominantly about progressive rock, you're bound to use the word 'challenging' a lot, and by God I do. Nevertheless, I feel that my adding to its ubiquity within the journalistic canon on the genre has never done me a disservice... until now.

I hope then you'll believe me when I say that this is a challenging listen. It's wholly instrumental, peppered with Gameboy samples and 8-bit warbles, synth sweeps and filter bass all overlaid with schitzophrenic guitar lines. Sometimes jaggy, sometimes triplet-ty (in a kind of U2 singles kind of way), and sometimes downright heavy, there's always just enough melody to keep the whole package hanging together. 

That said, despite its potential to ensnare the much-cooler-than-I mathrock crowd with its odd timings and rhythms, it's basically the sort of release that will only appeal to you if the promise of 'exactly what it says on the tin' gets your blood up. What's on the tin, I hear you ask? 

"Come on a 30 minute journey of shimmering guitars, ground-shaking bass and thunderous drums fused with circuit bent madness, synths, gameboys, lapsteels, cellos and electronics!" 

Fucking hell, sounds brilliant, right? Well, I think it's as just as crazy, random, bold and genius as that suggests. I hope you will too.