A few decades ago as punk and indie music rose to their heights you could not turn around without coming face to face with a compilation album showcasing new and unsigned bands certainly around the UK. Every city from Brighton to Sheffield and Liverpool to Belfast had an album or series of them to bring underground bands forward into a spotlight. That trend diminished over the years but there hopefully seems to be a new brewing resurgence in the concept if the growing number of albums already this year introducing emerging independent talent from around the world is to go by.
Pure Vol. 1 from the music website Music Review Unsigned is the latest and a tasty morsel of new indie flavoured sounds and artists to treat and inform our ears it is indeed. Bringing forth twelve rising bands and artists the release is a nicely varied and eclectic mix which offer plenty of new vibrant sounds for most individual tastes and a consistency of quality which inspires enthusiasm for the direction of indie music.
The album is top and tailed by the two best songs on the album but the tracks in between are no fillers either. The album opens with the stunning When the Sun Sets from London based band The Mouth of Ghosts. The quintet ignites the air with balmy electronic caresses and a heated ambience to leave the senses enthralled and in rapture especially with the striking and gorgeous vocals of Alla Seydalieva. Taken from their latest EP of the same name the song is an emotive kiss brought with a strength and power to leave knees weakened. Fusing the moodiness of Portishead and the subtle pop of The Sundays to the dark shadows of Deftones the track is immense and leaves a tall order for the other contributors to match.
The final track on the album from Israeli band 3/33 are certainly up to the challenge and set the senses and thoughts racing with their song Rainy Day. Starting with a strong yet not immediately grabbing mix of slow dawning crystalline melodies and a gentle yet shadowed breath the song relentlessly envelopes and permeates with secretive intent. As muscular arms spread their welcome the track starts rippling with a passionate intensity and discord tinged cascades of guitars and vocals to raise the pulse rate. It is a mighty song reminding of Echo and The Bunnymen and The Cure around their A Forest and Pornography days. As with so many of the artists on the album the band and song ensure that eyes and ears will be closely paying attention to their sounds ahead.
The songs in between these two are just as impressively strong which is generally rare for a compilation just through personal taste alone but it has to be said not one song left a feeling of being underwhelmed or drew less interest, all instigating the urge to investigate. Without going into each song individually though and to leave some mystery for you to find out we will give a quick mention for some other personal favourites which excited with a little more passion. These moments came with the excellent Reverie from UK alternative rock quartet The Dusk, This City by London duo Kissimmee, and the Bamboo Party song Warning Signs. The first of the trio again brings an air of eighties with its post punk/electro mesh filtered through a feisty rock energy and easily marked the Cheshire quartet as another band destined to make a big impact at some point whilst the pair of Leigh Alexandra and Drew Wale which make up Kissimmee powerfully offer up a big sound drawn from rock and pop punk which is openly impressive. Starting out with a flavouring of The Pretenders the song evolves into a full and flowing melodic charge which easily sits beside the best Paramore song. The latter of the trio Bamboo Zoo is an Irish quartet which lights up the air with an irresistible manipulation of teasing and magnetic guitar jangles, outstanding vocals, and blood pumping contagion.
As said though all songs are remarkably strong and easy to return to from the likes of the folk toned songs from Paul Brennan and Parallel, the rock punch of The Wall Street Thieves and Rosetta Fire, to the stirring sounds of Robb Murphy, A41, plus the sensitive strokes of Junah.
Available from http://www.musicreviewunsigned.com/mrupure.html Pure Vol. 1 is an album which leaves one in no doubt the healthy state of new music worldwide.
RingMaster 25/07/2012
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