She Made Me Do It is a band which weaves compelling adventures not only in sound and the web of flavours making up its character but also from the rich shadows within the depths of both and the duo’s imagination. Across a host of releases and tracks it has provided a kaleidoscopic landscape of intimation and contagion which has maybe been no more compelling than within new EP, Scorched. Its five tracks share intense enterprise and rich drama, the release a bold venture into the outfit’s creative psyche and one eagerly tapping into the cinematic conjuring of the listener.
The successor to their acclaimed Drenched EP, Scorched finds the twosome of Shaheena Dax (Rachel Stamp) and Will Crewdson (Rachel Stamp, Adam Ant, Scant Regard, The Selecter, Bow Wow Wow, Flesh For Lulu) infesting their alternative electronic rock with the richest tapestry of genre varied threads to escape the London based pair yet. Theirs has been a proposition always embracing the ripest essences of punk, new wave, post punk but the new encounter borders on the ravenous in its seizing of fresh diversity.
Scorched opens with the band’s new single, Love’s Demise bounding in on a tide of voracious rock riffs and swinging rhythms before the swiftly joining tones of Dax show just as much hunger in their melodic enticement. Crewdson’s guitar continues to snarl as its infectious nature aligns with that of Dax, hard and punk rock spices taunting as electronic fingers tease in the riotous but controlled stomp.
The rousing start is only accentuated by Fun and Games, a track which lit up the airwaves with its uncaging as one of last year’s best singles. A calm but keenly coaxing electronic pulse dances in ears first; it’s subdued but apparent skittishness soon surrounded by a contagion of air splattering beats and attention burrowing hooks, it all courted by the delicious dark bassoon-esque grumble of the bass. The infection loaded stroll is soon equipped with greater temptation as Dax brings her perpetual craft and captivation, alt pop and punk insisting on uniting with the track’s rock instincts to dig deeply and relentlessly under the skin.
Throughout both, shadows lurk if in a subdued state but now flood the sounds within the EP’s stunning third track and our senses. It is a cover of The Cure’s Three Imaginary Boys, a slice of already undeniable greatness given a whole new breath of drama and potency. Crewdson and Dax draw out the anxiety and tension of the original, increasing both as they escalate the post punk heart of the original. It is pure drama, emotions caught in a dense spiral of apprehension and inescapable contagion as the band equip the song with a cinematically claustrophobic air soaked in an emotional cold war amidst a crepuscular soundscape.
The equally exceptional Poison Aura follows, it too a dark senses consuming address of ears and thoughts even with the golden glow of Dax’s voice an absorbing light across the track’s caliginous tone and post punk nurtured landscape. The encounter ignited the imagination as much as ears as again a theatre of intimation provided a palette of suggestion so easy for the imagination to paint with.
For all the thick ravenous shadows the band breeds, each track is a surge of greedy catchiness too, the band’s pop instincts fuelling the heaviest dark and equally the most boisterous light, final track Fatal Confidante epitomising all in its esurient virulence and pop punk featured tenacity. As much as the EP’s tracks infest ears and imagination with the creator’s craft and fascination, all invade feet and body with a matching zeal, the last song on offer unscrupulous in getting the listener bouncing.
With a cover any band on a similar endeavour will have to truly go some to match and a striking quartet of inimitable and unique She Made Me Do It goodness, the sensational Scorched confirms the duo as one of the UK’s most exciting and imaginative encounters; one we have already been enslaved by and do not apologise for urging all to check out with even greater lust.
The Scorched EP is out now, available @ https://shemademedoit.bandcamp.com/album/scorched-e-p
https://www.shemmdi.com/ https://www.facebook.com/shemademedoitpage https://twitter.com/SheMMDI
Pete RingMaster 05/02/2020
Copyright RingMasterReview: MyFreeCopyright
Diversity is a potent trait within Couch and potently shows its creative worth with next up Tansfläch, the track an electro industrial incitement bearing the Neue Deutsche Welle tempting of a D.A.F. alongside the cold wave theatre of a Kraftwerk, while The Darkest Place adds its own individual new wave lined proposal in the varied mix with contagious appetite and dexterity. In voice and sound, Furio lights up ears and speaker with a virulent touch which is hard to ignore in movement let alone pleasure.
It is a strong and pleasing start but for us only a teaser to greater moments starting with the album’s stirring title track. With something of a Modern English meets John Foxx era Ultravox breeze across its spiky but fluid motion, the track has a wealth of hooks and melodic wiring at its disposable courtesy of the imagination of guitarists Andy Nelson and Anthony Anzaldo with synths just as skilfully manipulative before Further I Was reaps the temptation of both for its own body of virulence. One of those moments when that Devo reference is most keen, the song strolls along springing new wave contagion and post punk dynamics, the angular delivery of Farrar matched by the jerkiness of riffs and rhythms with the swinging beats of Jake Casarotti alone a rousing incitement.
To try and place the sound of Dry Cleaning, it sits somewhere between Pylon and the Au Pairs with an originality which embraces some familiar hues but twists them to its own inventive devices. Shaw’s spoken word styled delivery sparks thoughts of Lesley Woods of the latter of the previously mentioned bands and at times The Anaemic Boyfriends, her words almost snatches of life and opinion woven together to create and echo kitchen sink situations as well as broader issues. EP opener, Goodnight quickly reveals it is a potent and striking incitement just as magnetically matched by the sounds which stride alongside. The first song concussively strikes like a sonic cobra before breaking into a virulent stride the Gang Of Four would be proud of. Vocals and rhythms collude in their temptation, the insistence of the latter led by the throbbing bass irresistible as guitars add their choppy lures and beats swing with matching rapacity. A melodic hook right out of the Buzzcocks songbook is extra manna to devour as it entwines the intimacy of word and reflection.
Microcosms is the creation of guitarist/vocalist Andrew Tschiltsch, an initial solo project which after a few years saw the addiction of bassist Bryan Emer and drummer Jered Pipenbrink. Musically its alternative rock nurtured sound welcomes the inspirations of artists such as Arctic Monkeys, Bully, Cage the Elephant, Courtney Barnett, Portugal. The Man, and Wolf Alice and emerges as “music to question your beliefs to”. Debut release, the Know My Body EP, enticed well-receiving attention in 2017, its impact soon eclipsed by that of the Fairytale EP a year later. They are successes we expect to be once more surpassed by, given the chance, that surrounding Forget Us.
The following Broken Morning is a just as skilful manipulator of ears and appetite even as it instantly reveals a much warmer and calmer nature. That is no chain to an instinctive catchiness and creative eagerness though, the song devilishly impossible to resist joining in with especially when faced with one contagion laded chorus and again a swinging energy which enlivens the body and spirit of song and listener alike. There is something, if right now indefinably, familiar to the track but a hue which only adds to its compelling design and persuasion.
Gargantua opens up with Pizza Liza where synths immediately create a spirally coaxing before swinging rhythms and melodic heat accompanies the song’s emerging muscular presence. There is a natural catchiness to the weight though, synths all the while creating a bubbling sea of melodic intimation and temptation and at times adding a scent of The Stranglers’ Dave Greenfield to the fun. We will admit that the falsetto vocals of the band, a proposition something akin to The Bee Gees woozy after having their unmentionables firmly squeezed, was the one element personal tastes laboured with but certainly they are no weakness in the band or its sound especially as they add a touch of organic energy and a great emotional ‘desperation’ to things.