The Karma Party: Dark Matters EP

Standing eye to eye with and snarling viciously at governments, corruption, and the sea of injustices in society and then lyrically ripping their throats out, UK punk-steppers The Karma Party is an emerging force to call foul on the world whilst igniting passions with a fire of irrepressible sounds and electric energy. With debut EP Dark Matters the quartet from Blackpool has set the first aural landmark in their rise towards becoming one of the best incendiary creative confrontations in the country.

Consisting of vocalist Merc, guitarist Scummins, bassist Punkins, and drummer Luke, The Karma Party brews a heady tempest of hardcore, punk and dub-step with flames of electronica burning within the combative storm. It is a distinct sound but take pinches of Sonic Boom Six, King Prawn, Lazy Habits, and the Janice Graham Band with extra spice from Pendulum and you scratch the surface of their invigorating volatile antagonism.

The release takes its first bite with This Is Britain, an attack on the broken country brought with contagion and aggressively sculpted conciseness. An instant scrub of heavy rhythms and scarring riffs led by the excellent vocals of Merc attach to the ear with a Dead Kennedys like hook entwined around the sinewy core of the track. The song questions and provokes in sound whilst simultaneously challenging with razor sharp lyrics delivered with a bite and accuracy which grips tightly. Melodic keys flame and caress in the skies of the song to add a melodic weave to the muscular senses barracking triumph beneath. As anthemic as you can wish and virulently infectious the song is a dramatic and impressive start.

An opening height easily matched by the following Collapse, the track another insatiably energetic and forceful welcome intrusion on thoughts and passions. From its first breath the song is stomping with purpose through the ear with sonic shots exploding within the brawling energy, openly furthering the already impressive diversity to the imagination of the band. Like all the tracks on the EP, the song is direct and uncompromising but the band ensures that there is a full capture of the listener through heated invention and a delicious maelstrom of ideas and sounds.

Push Forward continues the outstanding conflict whilst expanding the depth and diversity to the songwriting and creativity. Oriental blooms of sounds wrap the ear first to fix attention and intrigue steadfastly before Merc begins the descriptive voice of the track, again a potent statement with unreserved sounds to match. Another punk riot ensues with that oriental seduction continuing to set passions aflame, the song twisting and barging through its purpose with provocative skill and a chorus which resonates with electro pulses. It has an impossibly viral vocal call for which there is no remedy and is proudly another sensational instigator for mind and heart which with its eastern ethnic winds and verbal strength reminds of Asian Dub Foundation at their best.

Completed by They Tell Me, a mesmeric song with drama inspiring keys and sonic mists which stretch across the sound to further the evolving soundscape of the release, and the punk driven defiant riot The Opposition, the EP leaves the listener a churned up and riled force of thought, emotion, and pleasure. Dark Matters is a towering triumph ready to soundtrack and advocate change, something you feel The Karma Party will find an even stronger depth and potency to in the future. A must have release of 2013 which will apply to every year and decade thereafter.

Grab the Dark Matters EP for free @ http://thekarmaparty.co.uk

9/10

RingMaster 05/03/2013

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Borg 64: Anywhere But Here EP

    It has to be said few bands manage to ignite that primal passion and excitement which borders on lust but to the list of those who have for us here, we can eagerly add Swedish noise twisters Borg 64. The band and their Anywhere But Here EP are just sensational, a tour de force which captures, chains up, and smashes the senses and heart with furious rampant psychotic ingenuity.

From Luleå, the trio of Sven Engdahl Hamilton, Fredrik Johansson, and Markus Wanler conjure antagonistic confrontations which devour the listener with rabid hunger whilst searing them with delicious addictive sonic invention and startling imagination. Originally a political drum n bass act which began in the late 90s, Borg 64 evolved into their own unique furnace of hardcore punk and electronic whipping. The band had two critically acclaimed releases on the now defunct Codebreaker Records but now return after a seven year hiatus stronger, more violent, and irresistibly virulent than ever before.

Released on Discouraged Records, Anywhere But Here snarls and chews on the senses and world through a quartet of uncompromising annihilatory blistering furies. From the initial electro fizz of opener Death To False Power Chords soon accompanied by a hellacious attack of crippling beats, the track is an immediate hook which has thoughts and emotions secured upon its vicious barbs. Into its stride the song is an unbridled abrasion of squalling vocals, deeply rummaging riffs, and intrusive incendiary electronics as contagious as they are wantonly seductive. The track, as the whole release, is a schizophrenic riot of vision and passion, its course twisting and winding tighter around the ear with delicious predatory basslines, caustic electro spite, and ruinous vocal fervour.

Late Nights At Quarks takes over from the stunning start to trash out greater heights and compulsive insidiousness, its vindictive rhythms and bass savagery complimented by sinister venomous sonic lashes and malevolence. The song is an exquisite but ferocious spear of inciting and intrusive invention which leaves greedy rapture in its aggressive wash. The following Judge Jury Executioner Talkshow Host is an equally intensive continuation of intent and sonic mastery with just as rich rewards and results for the listener. Once more the electro and viciousness of the band combine for a tsunami of rampaging invention and corrosive magnificence.

The staggering EP is completed by Luleå, a track surging with mischievous addiction forming hooks and synapse burning melodic poison which leaves one basking in its irrepressible heart and magnetic invention. The track is merciless as it erodes and enflames the passions whilst chewing with raptorial fervidness on the senses from first nasty and wonderful note to last.

Imagine a crazed mix of Converge, Enter Shikari, Kabul Golf Club, and Coilguns and you come near to the excellence of Borg 64 and their Anywhere But Here EP, though all suggestions are still off from their quite triumphant skilled and distinct discordance.

http://www.borg64.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Borg64

10/10

RingMaster 20/02/2013

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Zagar: Space Medusa

   From Budapest, Zagar is a five piece band which has been making great waves with their experimental electronica. There is great anticipation for their forthcoming album Light Leaks, but before then the band is releasing a taster with their first single from the album, Space Medusa via Mole Listening Pearls, a track sure to confirm the thoughts and appetite of fans and media.

The band which creates a sound based on wave rock, electronica and psychedelic soundscapes, began as three-fifths of the Yonderboi Quintet, a unit which found some acclaim and critical success. Moving on to make their own unique sounds keyboardist Balázs Zságer and scratcher Dj Bootsie began exploring and experimenting with their ideas. Recruiting drummer Tibor Lázár, guitarist George Ligeti, and bassist Ákos Zságer-Varga, Zagar stepped forward to evolve into a provocative and significant force on the Eastern European music scene. Their previous album Cannot Walk, Fly Instead won two nominations at the MTV Europe Music Awards as well as winning numerous awards elsewhere. The band is also earning keen attention worldwide through their releases and performances across Europe, including an acclaimed show alongside Depeche Mode on their Budapest leg of their Tour of the Universe. This just adds to the expectations upon their new album but first is the loud whisper from it in the mesmeric shape of Space Medusa.

From its first breath the song is a wash of pulsating deeply driven rhythms and warm expressive keys tiled with electro pokes and seductive persuasion first musically and then expanding into the teasing impassioned and smouldering vocals. It is an immediate soft and engaging temptation which sparkles and soothes across its tantalising expanse.  Musically the sound is as cosmically alluring as the lyrical journey into a dreamy magnetic realm far beyond the real world, its charms enabling thoughts and imagination to drift off into similarly flavoured places and visions. It is an entrancing swirl upon the ear and a release to raise the temperature of the wait for Light Leaks.

Released as a free download @ http://soundcloud.com/zagarmusic, Space Medusa is a treat all fans of artists such as Errol Alkan, Aeroplane, and Kitsune will be fully enamoured by.

www.zagarmusic.com

7/10

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RingMaster 20/02/2013

 

The Title Sequence: Straight To Video EP

Fresh yet borne of vintage techniques and feel, the Straight To Video EP from UK electronica band The Title Sequence is an enterprising and mesmeric treat. Available right now as a free download, the release is a slice of lo-fi magnetism which lays its breezy caresses upon the ear with craft and tenderness.

The North London band is the project of songwriter David Bailey and producer Nick Crofts. Formerly known as The Sound of Bailey, the duo are childhood friends who as The Title Sequence have already drawn interest from the likes of Steve Lamacq, Huw Stephens and Chris Coco with their music, including previous single Dinosaurs in February of this year. Taking influences from the likes of Camera Obscura, Boards Of Canada and Solar Bears, the pair open up more of their musical heart and passion with the five track Straight To Video EP.

Ahead of new single Pay Day and presented as a companion to their forthcoming album Stills, the release opens up with the bubbly and hypnotic Out Of This. Nostalgia brewed electronic pulses, bontempi whispers, and excellent guitar teases lead one by the hand within the warm and reflective walls of the song, its core a delight of gentle vocals caresses and golden melodic rays. Offering an elegance of eighties bands like Felt and China Crisis with a Thomas Dolby like electronic attraction and Owl City pop beckoning, the EP is a soft creamy aural dessert from which there is not quite enough to satisfy the appetite but delicious enough to make one keep coming back for more. That applies to the whole release, its individual tracks varied flavours never less than a full enticement if again they do not all always quench the thirst. Nevertheless the opener is an enchanting piece of indie electro pop, its mazy melodies and imaginative sonic drizzling quite impossible to pull away from.

The following My Light Was On is a reflective and emotive tale of lost romance, its slowly dawning strength wonderfully crafted within the haze of a fine guitar painting and passionate mists which place their brief but perpetual kisses upon thoughts and senses. Next up, Hide And Seek is a similar song in intent and effect but brought through a different warm wind of dual vocals and evocative sounds. The guitar again paints the picture whilst the male and wonderful female vocals provide the colour and emotive texture. It is simple but quite lovely and easy to immerse within.

Before the excellent final track, VHSEX is a very brief instrumental which blends steel drums with the white noise of the vintage tape deck reel the band used to record the release. It is ok, just an interlude but does suggest the band in the future have some ambient ideas they could well be ready to explore. The closing Desert Song is a homage to Ennio Morricone, the Mexican mariachi suggesting opening playing in visions of swirling whispers of dust and heat. Into its stride the track is a magnificent weave of cinematic and textures brought through dramatic trumpet and strings alongside soaring female vocal washes and the expressive tones of Bailey. There is a touch of The Monochrome Set to the track, the same imaginative and unique take on sound and story within.

It is an outstanding end to what is a very pleasing and exciting release. It also suggests the horizon will offer more and greater pleasures from The Title Sequence which ensures eyes and ears will be closely paying attention in their direction.

Get the your free download of The Straight To Video EP @

http://thetitlesequence.bandcamp.com/album/straight-to-video-ep

RingMaster 06/11/2012

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Sonnymoon: Self Titled

Photo credit- Patti Miller.

Unclassifiable, almost indescribable, and thoroughly enthralling, the new self titled album from US experimentalists Sonnymoon is a bedazzling jewel of this musical year. It is a release which magnificently stretches the sounds conjured within as much as the listener, an album which at times is pure rapture and celestial manna for the senses and in the moments where individual taste means a less cohesive connection only ever leaves one smoking in grateful  thought and imagination.

Sonnymoon consists of Dane Orr and Anna Wise, who met whilst studying at the prestigious Berklee College of Music. The Boston duo already have found acclaim through debut EP Golden Age of 2009, two track release Blast Off at the tail of last year, and the 2012 EP earlier this year. The new album is the band at its most magnetic yet, a journey of intangible and mesmeric soundscapes which almost defy logic but fluidly bring everything into a seamless and ingenious union. It is near impossible to describe their sound but calling it a fiery blend of The Sugarcubes, Rip Rig & Panic, De Staat, Propaganda, and Peaking Lights, is kind of in the ball park. The release is provocative and evocative, something to fire up the mind whilst igniting the heart.

Released through Plug Research, the album is in the mind twisting the psyche immediately with opener Wild Rumpus. Released as a single earlier this year, the song is a kaleidoscope of invention and its sonic offspring. It enters on a disorientating wind of electronics expulsions sending thoughts scattering in all directions before settling into a lively trip of eager jumbled rhythms, disharmonious whispers, and celestial dazzles. The enchantment which is the voice of Wise permeates the assembled entourage of sounds like a siren, her wonderful tones pulling everything round her like a melodic magnet. It is a stunning start soon accompanied by further outstanding pieces off composition and its realisation.

The warm perpetually evolving Greatness holds the heart in a seductive embrace with again Wise shining like a sun amongst the ever shifting infectious sounds of Orr. Completely different from its predecessor but still as innovative and compulsive, the track sparks the remaining fires the first left merely smouldering.

The album is kind of in two halves though it is preference to the sounds which makes the distinction. The first part is an energetic nonstop escalator of imaginative and air juggling invention whilst the second is a more relaxed and unassuming collection of songs though no less visionary. The likes of the wonderful sultry jazz coated Kali and the simmering Watersboiled accompanied by the irresistible temptations of Flit, Fleet, Float, and Nothing Thought, has every thought and emotion lifted and immersed into the beauteous contagion the songs offer. Kali is aural sex, its seduction through harmonies and shadowed caresses addiction forming whilst the following Watersboiled is a simmering orgasmic treat with sizzling harmonic kisses and splintered melodics upon dark pulses. It is again an infection of the deepest form and along with its sister in delicious wantonness just before, they are not only the best moments on the album but arguably in indie music this year.

As mentioned the latter part of the album has a more reserved and settled presence though there is no lack of unpredictable and thrilling invention, just an overall smoother flow of whispers and stroking warmth. Songs like the slightly corrosive Others By with its squeezed ambience forming bulges of disturbed energy and scorched melodies and the woozy Every Summer Night leave one lost in wraps of feverish sound and vision whilst the closing Just Before Dawn just sends chills through the body. Its first half is a wonder borne of Young Marble Giants, that same simple elegance pouring from every note and syllable into the ear. Nearing its fourth minute and halfway in, the song dons an orchestral lined cloak and transports the listener into a world of courtliness driven by natural peace and grandeur.

To be honest this only gives you a glancing blow at representing the majesty which is called Sonnymoon, band and album. It is a release which inspires and incites with every second whilst offering the time of your life in fractured excellence and discordant blinding beauty.

http://www.sonnymoonmusic.com/

RingMaster 16/09/2012

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Dogtanion – Japan

Eclectic and unpredictable, Japan the debut album from Dogtanion is a release which permanently intrigues and even with a landscape which is an undulating makes for one striking and ultimately enjoyable journey. It is a release which teases and plays with emotions and sensibilities whilst giving a mischievous glint to its air throughout. It is sharp and at times wicked especially lyrically but has a constant grace and mesmerism to leave one more than satisfied across its relatively brief presence.

     Dogtanion is the musical alter-ego of Matthew de Kersaint Giraudeau, a London-based musician and film-maker. Following up the well received single Islam; the album builds upon that first introduction with a gentle stroll full of irresistible twists and feisty asides to offer the unexpected and well crafted invention. A vibrant merge of electronica, acoustic and folk with essences of garage and lo-fi minimalism, the album keeps one captivated from start to finish. Arguably the first half of the album does leave the latter part in the shade somewhat but you can be quite sure it will be the reverse for just as many people and it is doubtful there will be any unable to find plenty of rewards in the release as a whole.

The album opens with Beast And The Boots a song which squeezes and slides along the imagination as firmly and skilfully as the artist manipulates his guitar, each note speaking passion with their sound and squealing caresses. The vocals are just as emotive as the music and all combined makes for a pleasing low key beginning to the release. By its end the piece has the ear and thoughts open for what is to come with brewing anticipation and eagerness.

The aforementioned single Islam comes next and immediately shows why it was so well received upon its release. Wonderfully acerbic in word and full of tantalising sounds and ideas within the warmth of sound, the song is a real treat. Imagine Arctic Monkeys writing words for a musical fusion of Seth Lakeman, Conformist and RKC and you get an idea of its charm and many aspects. Along with the following Fringepot the songs ignite the atmosphere with little blisters of musical light brought with mini intensive bursts of energy. The latter of the two is a meatier feast for the ear but both leave one with an immense smile inside and out for their unique and infectious hearts.

Best song on the album comes in the heated summer of Heavy Talk. A calypso lit fiesta of summer warmth and light headed enterprise the song is sheer excellence which refuses to let the ear and senses take a breath until its departure. Go back in time and think of something like Tom Hark from The Piranhas and you get a real flavour of not only the sound of the song but its energy and contagiousness. It is the biggest highlight of Japan and another fine example of the diversity within its shining walls.

It is from this point the album takes a turn and explores the melodic and impassioned beauty within the songwriting and shimmering sounds of Dogtanion. Bastard Song has a frame of boisterous beats to stir the ambience of the sounds and lyrical breath of the song to make a seamless switch from the upbeat first part of the album into the following heartfelt elegance. Songs like Never Change and Something Beautiful lay down their emotions in a haze of lush acoustic charm and whispered energies to great effect. Seemingly similar in intent the tracks carry their own individual presences to keep things new and though as mentioned for us the album does not retain the impossible to resist carriage from its earlier place in the ear it is never less than compulsive listening.

     Japan is an album with two faces, an A and B side which are distinctly different but obvious companions. It makes for an album from Dogtanion which works in different places for each individual and to varying success but it does work and all should find plenty to smile with inside its striking creativity.

RingMaster 05/08/2012

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ID:VISION : Destination Cybermind

Destination Cybermind the latest album from Belarus metal band ID:VISION is a release which enthrals and confuses whilst surprising and inspiring. It is a mighty fusion of sounds which makes getting a handle on the intention and direction of the album challenging at times, it is without doubt though one very enjoyable storm of extreme metal.

    ID:VISION seems to be tagged from extreme industrial to industrial black/death metal  which gives evidence to the diversity of their sounds and imagination. Their music is extreme, it is metal but from that point it is simply a maelstrom of invention and widely inspired sounds. The Minsk  septet formed in 2002 as a black metal band called Desecrated but as the subsequent years saw member changes it also brought changes in direction and sound. Firstly they became Iratus Dominus and in this guise explored a more intense and complicated sound with distinct black and death metal veins. Their debut album Dispatch the Incarnation of God arrived at this point in time to a strong response but 2006 saw another change as the band opened up the doors of experimentation. The band became ID:Vision and their creativity expanded into varied extreme metal and electronic genres. The first album in their new breath came in 2008 in the shape of Plazmadkaos, this was followed by the X-ray Sun EP the following year both to increasing acclaim as has this their newest offering.

The intro Enter the Cybermind opens up the album with a striking and mesmeric disturbed air. With an Eastern kiss the piece seeks out every synapse to an abrasive yet compelling effect, its energy a perpetual lure across the electrified surface. The track merges into the titanic assault that is Human Hazard. Guitars seize and twist the ear into eager submission with misshapen melodic enterprise and crushing riffs whilst the rhythms batter the senses like a raging storm, unrelenting and persistent. Electronic whispers seep within the intensity and vocals squeeze every ounce of venom from their delivery to scorch every surface they fall upon. The song is quite simply immense, a vicious yet contagious violation of extreme metal with industrial and melodic metal explosions.

A blend of stylish electro and ravenous dehabilitating metal shoves its way in next with Zarathustra XXI . Carrying a symphonic air to its monstrous weave the song lights up emotions as equally as it leaves them numb and breathless. As its predecessor the song is a continually shifting mesh of sounds which entwines itself securely and deeply within the senses, the aftermath of its assault a shell shocked but deeply satisfied heart. It is hard to fully capture the intention of the song due to its unsettling tenure within the ear but it is dramatically impressive to say the least. Extreme metal to industrial majesty the song leads one on a dazzling journey with the greatest rewards if not complete understanding.

The likes of Eschato-logics with its distorted almost hard rock tendencies wrapped around a spine of industrial technical deathcore venom and the corrupting devastation of the title track poke and intrude on every level but only leave full pleasure and eagerness for more in their wake. Vocally the album as on this latter song writhes through the most malicious bile soaked delivery onto caustically scathing tones and unsettling clean beckoning. Everything though upon the album is unpredictable and perpetually startling, not always successful but always the fullest conspirator of intrigue and absolute attention.

Despite whatever works personally or not Destination Cybermind is outstanding, an album which continually evolves with each audio and emotional partnership. Primal and nasty, sophisticated and ingenious, the release is one staggering concussive slab of metal and ID:VISION one of the most exciting bands. What they will conceive next no one can guess and expectations are pointless. All one can rightly assume is it will be something mighty and engrossing whatever its life.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/IDVISION/179615224207

RingMaster 28/06/2012

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Draconic Eliminations Project featuring MiXE1: In:Parallel

 

In:Parallel is the first collaboration between two rising forces in UK industrial/Electronica/EBM. The release sees the creative union of Draconic Elimination Projects and MiXE1 and makes for a thoughtful and thought provoking experience. The tracks within the EP scale industrial subgenres pulling them into a fully intriguing and at times mesmeric relationship with the ear. Imaginative and unpredictable the EP ignites sure promise for further artistic merges as well as a keen trigger to investigate the individual work of those involved in the release.

      Draconic Eliminations Project comprises of Guildford musician Mark Haigh and is a project exploring the dark shadows of electronics. With a 2011 self titled EP and a track on the recently released This Is What We Call British Industrial compilation already grabbing attention, Haigh has created the striking music and sounds for this new EP with MiXE1 through his lyrics and vocals brings an emotive atmosphere. MiXE1 is the solo project of Mike Evans who has only just released his second and impressive EP Module 02 on Static Distortion Records. Before hearing any music the thought is that the pair makes for an interesting and almost obvious fit, In:Parallel easily confirms.

Released July 1^st the EP keeps one guessing and fully focused through its expressive and inventive tracks. The release opens with We Are Inside Your Head, a song which within seconds of its haunting whispers and disturbed early ambience has the ear captivated. As the breath and pulse of the song lifts to find a little more urgency the vocals clasp every note with a melodic caress whilst a distinct shadowed undertone and predatory blackened sounds prowl the lighter sonic grace. The track infests the senses with a schizophrenic air behind its dazzling surface, a distressed energy permeating the ear in sound and vocals which seemingly are fighting the smooth sonics of the song. It makes for a track which triggers thoughts whilst slowly and secretly corrupting at the same time.

Violet shifts into a livelier and brighter atmosphere as it twists and flows through varied electro premises. The song is a blistering and insistent intrusion with an eager energy and drive within the acutely composed structures. With its sonic spattering upon the senses alongside the acidic manipulations as well as the coarser underlying intensity the song leaves one rife with instinctive thoughts and feelings.

Opening up further EBM areas the following electro stomp of Reversal is a breathless electronic surge through the ear with a darkened snarling heart preying on the senses. The track is a fine blend of venom and rampant electro lust to ensure a song again igniting evolving ideas and emotions. As with the previous two tracks it is not a song to immediately pull one right into its heart, the shadows and spiteful edge  a preying energy within the hypnotic light but it does bring a deeper intrigue than many similar veined releases.

The EP closes with Close To Me, a song which slips easily through the ear with a smooth and warm atmosphere in sound and voice though as ever there is a roughened edge to keep things unpredictable. The final song is a remix of  We Are Inside Your Head from Haru Yasumi Daibakuhatsu. The mix offers an inventive and consuming soundscape whilst highlighting a different facet of the original for n overall slightly destructive captivation.

In:Parallel is not the most infectious release in recent times but is one of the more imaginative and whilst it may not ignite the fullest fires for its sounds it certainly engages thought and emotions far more than most.  The EP is strong and enjoyable but feels like just the foreword on something much better and greater to come from the pair, with a second EP and album in the works.
Homepage: http://www.DEProjects.co.uk/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MiXE1 (MiXE1)
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DraconicElimination (D.E.P)

RingMaster 25/06/2012

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Eik: Undetected

In advance of their debut album Norwegian electronic band Eik described their sound as a combination of deep house, ambient textures and pop hooks, a description which did not exactly fire up great enthusiasm as one who is generally adverse to varied forms of dance music. Undetected soon proved to be much more than one imagined going in to it and though it will not retain a perpetual place in the ear here there is no escaping the album was thoroughly enjoyable and for fans of all forms of electronic music it is sure to be a deeply pleasurable treat.

Consisting of Per Kåre Limmesand (keyboards and effects) and Kristoffer Carlsen (drums), Eik have created a diverse and consistently elegant album whilst still making it a warm and welcoming infection for all melodic hearts. With a classical breath to much of Undetected alongside the eager pop veins and ambient heart, the release is a perpetually surprising and consistently fluttering warm kiss upon the ear. Using guest vocalists on many of the tracks, the duo create striking soundscapes and mesmeric weaves which sweep one up easily in to their expressive atmospheres.

All That You Said begins the pleasure with a female voice gently caressing the ear over electronic pulses and a brewing melodic synth mist. An intrusive hypnotic pulse throbs powerfully throughout the song whilst minimal yet expressive sounds and textures sway in and out and though it is a gentle start to the album, with the song soaring skies with impressive vocal harmonies and squeezing tight with that unavoidable pulse it is impossible not to be captivated.

The following duo of tracks Love Storm and Seems To Be Real bring an eighties electro infection which is delicious. The first reminds of early Human League with a blend of the sophistication of Depeche Mode and the pop of Blancmange. The male vocals are outstanding adding to the nostalgic feel and the track is not long in becoming a firm favourite even though the latter sky bound melodies take the song into areas reminding of Vangelis which is not as agreeable. The second of the two songs is a sea of sirenesque female vocals and addictive melodic pop caresses. It immediately excites with a Visage seeded pulsating start before the female vocals add their great energy and pop cream to the electronic dessert beneath. Her vocals actually remind of the pop stylings of Aqua but do not panic it all works perfectly and is a wonderful track.

The instrumental Background For Documentaries and the following techno/dance fuelled 74 did miss the mark quite easily but that is down to personal taste though the fact that the instrumental did not offer an experience and journey as impactful and imaginative as on other songs was disappointing. It failed to ignite imagery or emotions and was generally just underwhelming.

Things are soon on track again though with a pair of impressive songs. Thinking Of is a delightful piece of music with vocals dazzling the ear over minimal beats and restrained but glittering synth invention. The song is simple but fully effective and again mesmeric.  The best track on the album Utopia follows straight after and it is a real gem. With lively ripples of Middle Eastern Music teasing and weaving amongst again an eighties recalling electronic imagination the song is magnificent and destined to be the most revisited. Again the likes of Blancmange come to mind as well as Eik contemporaries Austerlitz, the combination especially with the rhythmic and voice only twist within the song glorious.

    Undetected is a great and very pleasing surprise for these ears and though maybe not an album we will be immersing within as often as others there are certainly tracks which demand and will receive a persistent invitation to entertain.  With the album Eik also suggest there are bigger and more imaginative things to come and we for one cannot wait. If electronic pop with a real essence and heart appeals Eik is a must, so go find and enjoy.

Ringmaster 10/06/2012

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Reform The Resistance : The Truth Is Dangerous

 

Sometimes when a band creates a truly eclectic album the collection of songs can become an entangled but unconnected aural web which leaves as much confusion as pleasure. US melodic rock band Reform The Resistance with their debut album The Truth Is Dangerous is a fine example of how it can work and though at rare times the album does venture towards that uncertainty the Nashville based trio overall has created a release which cleanly impacts on the ear, emotions, and thoughts.

The band emerged from the ashes of Phoenix band Justifide which contained Reform The Resistance vocalist/guitarist Jason Moncivaiz and bassist Sambo Moncivaiz. Within two years of the demise of the their former band the duo returned with Reform The Resistance in 2007 with the skills of drummer Ryan Dugger brought in to complete their new vision. There was no rush to the creativity, the evolution of their ideas and sound allowed an organic pace and emergence. The following year saw the band release the …And It Begins EP followed by tours throughout Europe and shows in the US. Once touring finished the threesome began working on The Truth Is Dangerous, completing it in October 2010. Produced by Jason Moncivaiz and recorded in his own studio, the album found its way into the attention of Wuli Records through Doug McBride of Gravity Studios where the album was mastered. This led to the release of the album last year to seemingly constant acclaim from all who discover its charms. With the quality and fine invention of all  eleven songs contained within its walls it is no surprise the amount of positive and eager responses it has been receiving, the album being fresh, unpredictable, and most of all openly satisfying.

As mentioned The Truth is Dangerous is brazenly varied bringing to mind the likes of Deftones, Radiohead, Mutemath, Snow Patrol and more. The sound though is distinctive to Reform The Resistance and despite the multiple flavours heard their invention ensures there is never a moment the album truly sounds like someone else and whilst musically they employ various shades of rock from electronica, R&B, punk rock and hip hop to name a few of the spices permeating the whole album everything is a seamless blend.

It opens with the melodic punk fuelled Kill Lies, an eager and formidable track of bristling energy and welcoming anthemic breath. With warm harmonies wrapped around the pulsating muscle of the song the track riles up the ear with a taste of punk to whiffs of hardcore and a rap punk intervention reminding of the likes of the Kennedy Soundtrack. By its end the impressive opener has the ear eager for much more.

Next the band with Tonight We Ride brews up a powerful melodic rock storm. It is restrained in intensity but powerful in emotion and irresistibly captures the imagination with further anthemic strength and compulsion. This is the first twist in the distinct diversity the band brings to the album though it is a nearer companion to its predecessor than later tracks are to their side by side playmates.

Preceded by an expressive instrumental in Depressed But Alive, the enchanting Starlight with a Coldplay like essence and the electronic lined Are You One Of Us Or Are You One Of Them proceed to light up the senses. Both are completely different but both mesmeric and easy to find a connection and rapport with. The latter of the two is an ever shifting piece of invention sweeping from its electro metal like entrance through a melodic release of the heart into a stirring and decisive pleasuring of the ear.

Best song on the album is Mercy In Blood, a song offering an aggressive and striking intensity without losing any melodic and touching harmonic infection. With a distorted finish to energy and sounds the song is a fully engaging and surprising pleasure and is as removed from other tracks as it is their eager companion.

The album brings further good moments as in This Present Darkness and If I Can Survive but it does fail to reach the earlier heights again before it takes its leave. The great variety relinquishing the previously firm connection between the tracks compared to previously. Overall though The Truth Is Dangerous is an impressive album with Reform The Resistance surely on the verge of making a distinct and lingering mark.

http://www.reformtheresistance.com

RingMaster 05/06/2012

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