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Archives for August 2008

The Maccabees – Colour It In

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‘Colour It In’ is the debut album from the Brighton based indie band that is The Maccabees; the album was released through Polydor Records in May 2007 and consists of a total of thirteen tracks. The band plays its own brand of indie pop and for fans of such bands as The Cribs, The Pigeon Detectives, and Mystery Jets then The Maccabees music is well worth listening to. The bands vocals are an acquired taste and I’d therefore recommend seeking out the band’s music at a source such as YouTube or MySpace before committing to buying this album; the vocals will not be appreciated by all, the instrumental side of things on the other hand is absolutely magnificent and I’m sure that everyone that listens to this album will take plenty of enjoyment from The Maccabees instrumental element.

‘Good Old Bill’ gets the album off to a decent enough start, it’s quite a pleasant track to listen to and the band here makes excellent use of guitar sound. Always the instrumental side of things is excellent here and from start to finish with this album in fact there’s never a dull instrumental moment. The drumbeats are brilliant and the guitar work also is simply stunning in its execution; the instrumental side of things reminds me a little of Razorlight at times here, the vocals are very different however and the uniqueness of the bands vocals is probably The Maccabees main selling point. It’s the bands vocal use which makes the music stand out, the vocals are different to most and the music therefore grabs your attention; even if you don’t like the bands vocals then there’s no denying that they’re different. The vocals are often very central to the band’s sound, for me it is the instrumental side of things that is most impressive here however and most markedly the band’s terrific use of guitar.

‘About Your Dress’ and ‘Precious Time’ are two of the bands best efforts from this album and come fifth and sixth on the album respectively. ‘Precious Time’ has an absolutely excellent chorus which really makes the music stand out, the music is hugely striking and the track is therefore highly enjoyable to listen to. ‘About Your Dress’ is similarly blessed in the chorus department and once more the instrumental side of things is absolutely brilliant here. The drumbeats are brilliant whilst some super guitar sounds also here are achieved. The track is intelligently constructed and although the vocals are a little irritating in the verse; the chorus is very cleanly sung out and absolutely excellent to sing along to.

‘Toothpaste Kisses’ is by far the best track from the album and is utilised here as the albums closing number. It’s a supremely laid back track and really does work well here. The music is soothing to listen to and it truly is an excellent track to sit back and unwind to. It’s largely instrumental and this I feel is why I perceive it to be the best track of the album; I’m not a huge fan of lead singer Orlando Weeks vocal tone and less is therefore more here. When the instruments are left to do the talking the end result is absolutely exceptional here and always the track is supremely soothing to listen to and packed full of positivity. Even the vocals are a lot better to listen to here, they lack the whininess that they have with the majority of the other tracks present on this album and instead are quite cleanly and superbly sung out. The Maccabees has here saved the best until last and it’s therefore worth bearing this in mind when listening to ‘Colour It In’ for the first time.

‘Colour It In’ is a pretty decent debut from The Maccabees, for me it loses appeal due to the nature of the vocals however although I can appreciate what the band has done here for being different and not just copying the trends that others have set beforehand. It takes guts to try out something different and for The Maccabees it has all paid off and the band has managed a decent degree of commercial success. I can understand the appeal of The Maccabees and as I’ve already stated; ‘Toothpaste Kisses’ is an absolutely magnificent track and one which I thoroughly recommend listening to. Even if you don’t listen to any of the other tracks from this album then ‘Toothpaste Kisses’ is most definitely one to give a spin; you’ll surely not be disappointed with what you hear and the instrumental succulence of The Maccabees music will almost definitely highly impress you. This is not the greatest indie pop album ever to have been released, it’s still pretty good though and if you appreciate the vocals of Orlando Weeks then that will obviously be an added bonus; listening to this album and not liking his vocals is a little grating, the instrumental side of things always is excellent however and if you love a good instrumental display then I’d definitely consider giving this ‘Colour It In’ album a go.

‘Colour It In’ is not an album that will ever change your life; it’s still pretty fun to listen to though and if the vocals float your boat then this combined with the supreme nature of the instrumental side of things should provide for an absolutely exceptional overall listening experience.

Label: Polydor Records
Release Date: May 14th 2007

Rating:
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Hydrogyn – Deadly Passions

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‘Deadly Passions’ is the second studio album from the Kentucky based rock band that is Hydrogyn. The band was formed in 2003 and as well as having released two studio albums the band has released a live album also. The band is fronted by Julie Westlake and it’s therefore her vocal tone which hits you throughout this album; she has a great voice and puts an awful lot of power behind it in order to belt out the ten tracks of this album. The guitar riffs also possess great strength and although not hugely exciting; the instrumental side of things is still quite pleasant to listen to here.

The album gets off to an explosive beginning with opening number ‘Rejection’, the track possesses a fast tempo and really kicks the album off with great power. Hyrogyn here storms through the track and executes it absolutely excellently. The vocals are brilliant and the guitar work also is really quite interesting to listen to. Although the guitar riffs are decent enough here however; throughout much of the album the band does seem to lack instrumental power a little and instrumentally the music therefore becomes quite tiresome quickly. The tracks are pleasant enough to listen to, there’s often a lack of energy and excitement in the instrumental sector however and the tracks have a tendency to all merge together as one. Julie Westlake is a hugely talented vocalist but the rest of the band perhaps lacks the instrumental talent to provide her with an impressive enough instrumental backdrop.

With tracks such as ‘Seroquil’, ‘Shadow’, and ‘On And On’; Julie Westlake shows herself to be a truly exceptional front woman; she has a great voice and always here her voice is absolutely excellent to listen to. ‘Seroquil’ for instance has an absolutely beautiful verse whilst ‘On And On’ on the other hand has a hugely hard hitting chorus. Westlake’s vocal range is absolutely magnificent and throughout this album it is her vocal influence which makes the music so impressive to listen to. Julie Westlake is without doubt one of the most talented female vocalists I’ve ever had the pleasure of hearing. If only the rest of the band had the instrumental talent to really do her voice justice then Hydrogyn would be an absolutely unstoppable furious force of a rock band.

Jeff Westlake is the bands guitarist, at times he pipes up with an impressive guitar solo; for the most part however his guitar work is fairly unexciting and really does hold back the overall quality of the album. The drumbeats are equally unexciting on the whole and the main failing of Hydrogyn is most definitely in its instrumental section. Near enough title track ‘Deadly Passion’ contains some super guitar work so it’s not as though the band can’t produce the goods when it wants to, for the most part the instrumental side of things is just nothing special though and given the excellence of Julie Westlake’s voice; she really deserves a lot more.

Were this album a little more instrumentally energetic and exciting then ‘Deadly Passions’ would be a far more enjoyable album to listen to. This is not a bad album; the vocals are absolutely amazing for instance, the instrumental side of things is definitely a little disappointing however and a little more innovation in the guitar playing department certainly wouldn’t go amiss. With the right songs Hydrogyn could easily be a successful commercial rock band; Julie Westlake has a great passionate and powerful voice, and it’s also really clean and approachable in its sound. I’d love to hear the band show a little more with its next album; all that is required here is a few instrumental tweaks and changes and the music would be far harder hitting and exciting to listen to. Hydrogyn is a decent enough band and the lead vocals are exceptional; instrumentally the music lacks edge though and this is most definitely something that is holding the band back a little at current.

If you’re a fan of female vocals then ‘Deadly Passions’ could be a decent album to listen to; for vocal ability you won’t find much better than Julie Westlake and for fans of vocalists such as Hayley Williams, Amy Lee, and Sharon Den Adel then her voice should most definitely be of great appeal. Instrumentally the album is always held back a bit, vocally there is no stopping Julie Westlake here however and ‘Deadly Passions’ is probably worth listening to just to hear how amazing her voice truly is. Give this album a go and see what you think, the vocal melodies are simply stunning and I’m sure you’ll be incredibly impressed with the range and passion that has here been achieved by Julie Westlake.

Label: DR2 Records
Release Date: June 23rd 2008

Rating:
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Look See Proof – Between Here and There

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‘Between Here and There’ is the twelve track debut album from the Hertfordshire based band that is Look See Proof. The album has seen its release through Weekender Records, and what we have here with Look See Proof is yet another Futureheads style post-punk revival/indie rock band. The band’s sound hints at a number of different bands such as Bloc Party, The Rapture, and of course the aforementioned Futureheads. This is not a particularly bad album, it’s incredibly unoriginal though and everything that has been accomplished by Look See Proof here has already been done better by others. The album is bland and treads no new ground whatsoever; the music of Look See Proof will no doubt be liked by many, it’s the commercial post-punk revival sound that a lot of bands are popularly producing at the moment; it doesn’t make the music any more original or exciting though and commercial success is by no means a measure of innovation.

The album begins with ‘You Don’t Get It’, a fairly interesting track with a decent enough chorus to boot. Were this album released a few years back then the band’s sound would probably be more exciting; as the genre has been done to death already though the music therefore lacks edge, energy, and excitement. As the album progresses the tracks have a horrible knack for blending together into one and never can you quite tell where one ends and the next begins. All twelve tracks sound incredibly similar and throughout all of them I’d say that the band that Look See Proof sounds most like here is most definitely The Futureheads. Half of the tracks present here do in fact sound like absolute carbon copies of The Futureheads music; no marks whatsoever for originality then and marks deducted in fact for pure bandwagon jumping factor.

The further you get through this album the less exciting the choruses begin to get. For a few tracks the choruses are quite catchy and you almost find yourself singing along; after a while you begin to notice that every track has the exact same echo effect in the chorus however and that there’s no telling the tracks apart even by their choruses. It’s a very irritating factor here that Look See Proof shows no obvious signs of any actual talent as a band; every quality of the music is stolen from others and every guitar riff, every vocal melody, and every drumbeat also; all is taken directly from the music of others. Look See Proof is not a bad band, as a Futureheads cover act I can imagine that they’d be brilliant; rehashing other people’s ideas is a lot less difficult to do and far less impressive however than creating music that is actually a little innovative and original.

Full credit must go to Look See Proof though for including at least one track that doesn’t sound like the musical lovechild of Bloc Party and The Futureheads. ‘Bishopsgate’ sound nothing like either of these bands; oh no, the band instead here chooses to take a little inspiration from Pete Doherty; brilliant. The track is dreadful and the bands singing of ‘I don’t wanna pay the rent’ in the chorus is completely out of tune. It’s painful to listen to and you have to wonder why the record label didn’t save the artist a little embarrassment here by using auto-tune; the track sounds rough and the vocals are completely dire. It’s a definite low point for the album and why the band/record label saw it fit to include this one I just don’t really know.

Closing track ‘Start Again’ is perhaps one of the better efforts from this album; it’s still very unoriginal but does work out quite well for Look See Proof here in that the track is reasonably interesting and exciting to listen to. It is as ever very Futureheads in its nature and if you like the music of The Futureheads then you’ll probably like this track as well. Despite this being my favourite Look See Proof attempt from this album I’d still rather listen to The Futureheads though; why accept an imitation when you can listen to the real thing.

If you listen to a lot of post-punk revival music then you may well find the time in your day to listen to Look See Proof; if however you’re looking for something a little new and different from the norm then Look See Proof is not the band to provide you with this. The Futureheads2 would be a much more apt name for the band than Look See Proof; perhaps the band could change their name to something like ‘Look and listen to See Proof that we sound exactly like The Futureheads’ in fact, or perhaps that’s already what the band’s name is short for anyway. Some of the music is fairly interesting here and this is not a terrible album; it’s very unoriginal though and it’s therefore difficult to listen without having that niggling annoyance in the back of your mind about the lack of creative innovation displayed by Look See Proof and the copycat nature of the band’s music. It’s all very well to take influence from other artists but to try and mimic their sound exactly is just taking it a step too far; Look See Proof is yet another sound-alike post-punk revival band and for most it’s probably for the best to avoid this ‘Between Here and There’ album.

Label: Weekender Records
Release Date: June 2nd 2008

Rating:
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Torche – In Return

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It was in 2004 that the American rock band Torche released its debut album; in 2007 the band followed it up with the release of 7 track mini-album ‘In Return’ through the Rock Action record label though and contained here is a grand total of 20 minutes of music. It’s a pretty interesting seven track release and if you like your rock music to be played hard and heavy then you should quite appreciate the sound of Torche.

This mini-album storms into action with ‘Warship’, it’s a great way to begin the release and Torche does here show itself to be an absolutely excellent band. Vocals are barely used in this track and the instrumental side of things is therefore left to do the vast majority of the talking. It’s an enjoyable track and if you like heavy instrumental rock music then the music should most definitely be of appeal.

With all of the tracks present on this release the music is at least 50% instrumental. Vocals do play a fairly large part in the sound at times, most of the time however it is the guitar work which makes the band’s music come across so strongly and the drumbeats also which sound so brilliant here. This is one incredibly talented bunch of musicians and the rock sounds which the band creates here really do require to be heard for their brilliance to be fully understood.

All seven of these tracks are intelligent and supremely strong in their composition; there is never a dull moment here and from first track ‘Warship’ right through to closing number ‘Hellion’ the music is always exceptionally well worked here. It’s hard to describe the tracks individually as all seven are so instrumental based and I feel I’d end up repeating myself to a tedious degree; what I can tell you about this mini-album however is that with every track there is a great deal of guitar distortion and a pummelling drum sound which has here been achieved.

If you’re someone that requires for vocals with your music then this will not be one for you; there are not many vocal parts present here but when they do come they are always roared out ferociously. The vocals are distorted in the same way that the guitar riffs are and this is something that really does work out incredibly well for Torche here; it really helps to add to the atmosphere and further the brilliance of this release.

For all rock fans of the world I’d definitely recommend giving ‘In Return’ a listen, you won’t find much in the way of vocals but what you will hear here is a lot of succulent instrumental play. All of the bands musicians are excellent and I really do feel that there is a huge degree of intelligence behind the music here. The music is always compelling to listen to and listening to this 20 minute mini-album is therefore an absolute treat. Give this seven track release a listen and prepare to be blown away by the bands heaviness and truly exquisite musicianship.

Label: Rock Action
Release Date: October 15th 2007

Rating:
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Jack McManus – You Think I Don’t Care

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Jack McManus is a 23 year-old Brit School educated singer/songwriter who has incredibly big hair. ‘You Think I Don’t Care’ is the second single to have been lifted from his debut album ‘Either Side of Midnight’. Like many of his Brit School peers; Jack McManus creates incredibly dull lightweight pop fodder and for most his music is therefore probably best avoided.

‘You Think I Don’t Care’ is a very weak single; it’s the sort of song that if it came on the radio then you probably wouldn’t even notice it was playing. The track is very bland and leaves little of a lasting impression whatsoever. McManus tries to sell the track with its chorus but for me it just doesn’t really work. The tracks chorus is a lot better than its verse; it’s still not very good though and although it provides for pleasant enough background music it lacks the edge to ever be used as anything more than just background sound. It’s the sort of inoffensive music that could be played in a lift; elevator music if you will.

Jack McManus is quite talented and has a nice voice; this track is extremely lacklustre however and despite the fact that he’s obviously quite a talent, his talent is not here being best utilised. If Jack McManus can convince record company Universal Music that he’s worth sticking with for a second album then his second studio album could well be one to watch out for; whether or not McManus will last that long in the fickle business that is music however remains to be seen.

Unless you’re looking for a track to be played in the background whilst performing other activities then Jack McManus ‘You Think I Don’t Care’ single is definitely one to be ignored.

Label: Universal Music
Release Date: July 21st 2008

Rating:
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4ft Fingers – New Beginnings Of Old Stories

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4ft Fingers - New Beginnings of Old Stories‘New Beginnings Of Old Stories’ is the fourth studio album from the UK skate punk band that is 4ft Fingers. The album consists of twelve tracks and if you’ve ever heard one of the bands albums in the past then you can expect more of the same from 4ft Fingers here. Never has the band’s sound developed much and always when 4ft Fingers returns with any new material, you always know what to expect; good solid skate punk music.

The album begins with the fairly catchy ‘Where Did All The Legends Go?’, progresses with the punchy ‘Thick As Thieves’, never do you feel here though that the band ever really gets properly into its stride. The album is okay, I don’t feel that it showcases 4ft Fingers at the band’s very best however and always here the energy levels seem to be a little lacking. From start to finish the album is always enjoyable to listen to, having listened to all of the band’s previous albums however I’d have to say that 4ft Fingers has done a lot better than this in the past and that this is the weakest album of the lot.

The tracks always possess an excellent guitar element and fine vocal style also, the tracks lack passion however and always you find here that there is something a little lacking about the music. This is technically a pretty solid album and with tracks such as ‘The Tale Of Benjamin Lloyd’ and ‘Deal Those Cards’ the bands fine skate punk sound is put across incredibly well. The tracks all have excellent choruses and the album is quite interesting to listen to, it definitely lacks edge however and I therefore believe the bands other albums to be of far superior overall quality. All of the bands albums sound quite similar; it’s just that with this one the bands members all seem to be lacking in passion and excitement to record; they’ve done it all before and it just seems to me that they’re getting a little bored of it all.

If you’ve never listened to the music of 4ft Fingers and liked it then you’ll also enjoy this album from the band; it’s a fairly decent skate punk album and always it’s a lot of fun to listen to. The choruses are fantastic to sing along to and there’s a great uplifting quality about the music at all times; comparing these twelve’s tracks to the bands earlier work however and I do feel that the band sounds a little tired here. The music is well put across and in all areas the sound has been strongly constructed; as it’s the bands forth album and they’ve never really changed their style at all though I do feel that 4ft Fingers is here running out of ideas a little.

The band’s sound is quite sturdy throughout here and for the finest sing along moments I’d definitely recommend giving ‘Where Did All The Legends Go?’ and title track ‘New Beginnings Of Old Stories’ a listen. ‘Where Did All The Legends Go?’ is the albums opener and gets the album off to a great start; it’s three minutes and 33 seconds in length and always here the vocals are excellent and the guitar riffs packed full of energy. ‘New Beginnings Of Old Stories’ on the other hand is the albums closing number and is close to four minutes in its length. It brings the album to a fantastic finish and really ends the release nice and tidily. It leaves you excited to hear further 4ft Fingers music in the future, and although the band’s sound is not at its best here for much of this album; I do feel that the future is still potentially quite bright for 4ft Fingers so long as the band can rediscover its enthusiasm.

If you like skate punk music then I’d definitely recommend giving the music of 4ft Fingers a listen; don’t start with this album though as the bands other three are all a lot better than this one. ‘New Beginnings Of Old Stories’ is not a bad album, it’s just a bit average when compared with the bands others and for a better listening experience you should therefore look to the bands earlier albums of ‘At Your Convenience’, ‘From Hero To Zero’, and ‘A Cause For Concern’.

Label: Not On Your Radio
Release Date: April 7th 2008

Rating:
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Dragons – Here are the Roses

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Dragons is a band which takes its influence from the likes of Depeche Mode and Joy Division; Dragons is a band that tries to recreate the exact sound of both of these bands in fact. It’s difficult to listen to any of the ten tracks present on this ‘Here are the Roses’ album without scratching your head and wondering ‘Haven’t I heard these songs before?’ The Answer to that question you ask yourself would probably be no, it’s just that Dragons sound is copied entirely from the two aforementioned artists and the band attempts to put to record nothing in the least bit new or original here. The album has a run time of just over 43 minutes, and unless you want to listen to an inferior Joy Division album then there’s really no reason to put yourself through the whole ordeal of listening to this album.

From opening title track ‘Here Are the Roses’ right through to the closer ‘Forever’ the music always is incredibly weak and never particularly exciting or in fact interesting to listen to. The vocals are depressing in their tone, and the artists sound is clearly heavily influenced here by 80s electronica. The album is bland in its progression and every single track present here possesses the same dreary vocal tone.

If every element of the music wasn’t entirely stolen from other artists then I’d probably enjoy this album a little more than I do; sadly the members of Dragons don’t have an inch of creativity present in their collective bodies however and the music therefore fails miserably here. There are a couple of tracks present here that are reasonably enjoyable to listen to; ‘Obedience’ for instance has a little more about it than much of the rest of the album, and ‘Epiphany’ possesses an absolutely brilliant drum solo in its introduction; much of the album drones along depressingly however and more often than not here Anthony Tombling Jr.’s (lead vocalist) vocal tone sends me half to sleep.

Dragons only formed in 2005 and ‘Here are the Roses’ is the bands début album, I can’t see the band returning for another however and if a second album ever does emerge then Dragons will have to put a lot more into it than this. Dragons blends post-punk elements with 80s electronica also, and were I to compare them to a current modern day band then it’d probably be Editors; Dragons is not as good a band as Editors however and the bands members do I feel lack the talent and creativity to ever be as big a name as Birminhgam’s Editors.

If you’re a big fan of post-punk revival artists then you may well have some sort of an interest in the music of Dragons. Dragons is most definitely not the best post-punk revival act currently in existence however and for a more entertaining listening experience I’d definitely recommend listening to the Editors instead, or maybe even the artists that Dragons is so keen to try and emulate here; Depeche Mode and Joy Division.

Label: OHM
Release Date: June 4th 2007

Rating:
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Path Of No Return – The Absinthe Dreams

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Released in 2007 through Burning Heart Records/Epitaph, ‘The Absinthe Dreams’ is the second studio album from the Swedish metalcore band that is Path Of No Return. The album consists of eleven tracks and clocks in at just over 42 minutes in length; it’s a pretty decent album and although not perfect, Path Of No Return is most definitely a band that is good at what it does. Path Of No Return sets out to attempt nothing new here, ‘The Absinthe Dreams’ would not win many marks for originality but what the band lacks in creativity it more than makes up for in talent.

The album gets off to a furious start with ‘Soran’, right from the word go the bands powerful guitar riffs and ferocious vocal tone hit you hard. The bands sound is strong and always here the music is powerful in its progression. ‘Soran’ provides an excellent opening to the album and throughout the release the bands tracks remain consistently strong and excellent to listen to. Due to the fact that the band is so unoriginal this therefore detracts away from the overall listening experience a little at times, for the most part however you tend to forget about this as the music is just so good here.

Title track ‘The Absinthe Dreams’ is most definitely one of my absolute favourites from this album, it’s instrumental to begin with and then at about a minute in the music really begins to explode. There’s the light sound of drumming, a pleasant underlying bass sound, and slight guitar stroke also; at the 45 second mark the vocals begin to roll and build in power as they charge through the track. There are a couple of instrumental sections utilised here, the band gifts you with a nice calm instrumental piece before thrusting you into the full pelt of the vocals and this really is something that works out terrifically well for Path Of No Return here. The calmness of the track breaks the album up nicely and is a nice change from the bands usual full on metalcore antics. ‘The Marriage of Black and White’ is another excellent track from this album with which the band repeats a similar sort of song structure.

It’s almost as though Path Of No Return was saving it’s best until last here however as with closing track ‘The Poet’s Walk’ the bands music actually sounds better than ever. The track provides a fantastic final five minutes for the album and really brings the music to a most magnificent end. The track progresses well, momentum builds powerfully throughout, and always here there is much to be taken from the artists sound. The music is great to listen to and the track really leaves you wanting for more. The band winds it down with about a minute to go and it’s therefore crystal clear that the record is over and the end of the album has been reached. For the final minute of the album atmospheric sound is utilised which slowly fades into the background as the album draws to its end.

‘The Absinthe Dreams’ is not the most original album in the world, it’s still quite a good one to listen to though and if you’re looking to listen to a decent metalcore band then you can’t go far wrong with Path Of No Return. I’d definitely recommend giving this ‘The Absinthe Dreams’ album a go; don’t expect the band to try and reinvent the wheel but do prepare to be impressed. It consists of eleven tracks, and although they’re not all perfect there are a number present here that are most definitely well worth listening to. As far as metalcore goes then you won’t find much finer an album than this, so if the genre floats your boat then most definitely give ‘The Absinthe Dreams’ a listen.

Label: Burning Heart Records/Epitaph
Release Date: August 27th 2007

Rating:
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The Automatic – Steve McQueen

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It’s odd to listen to the music of The Automatic without the background yelping of Alex Pennie; for album number two that’s what we’ve got to prepare ourselves for however as Pennie is no longer in the band and all new songs are therefore yelpless. ‘Steve McQueen’ is the lead single for the bands second album ‘This Is A Fix’, at first I wasn’t too sure about it but the more I listen to it the more I love it. The lyrics are dreadful, the track is hugely catchy however and the driving guitar riff throughout the track really helps to progress the music and make the bands sound come across incredibly powerfully.

The song structure is very similar to that of ‘Monster’, the bands sound hasn’t progressed much; it hasn’t really changed at all in fact other than the aforementioned lack of screams and screeches. Some may argue that The Automatic without the screams is a far more attractive prospect, others however will complain that Alex Pennie was what made this band so special; what made The Automatic just that little bit different and interesting. Personally I’m undecided as to which side of the bands sound I prefer the most, what I will say on the issue however is that I love both.

If the yelping Pennie put you off with album number one then ‘This Is A Fix’ could well be the album for you on the basis of its title track (which you can download completely for free) and on the evidence of this lead single ‘Steve McQueen’ also. This is a great track, you might not like it too much at first but stick with it and I promise you it’s a grower.

The track has been produced by Butch Walker (Fall Out Boy, American Hi-Fi, The Academy Is…) and his production of the track truly does come across supremely well. There’s a definite Jimmy Eat World feel and clarity about the music here and if you can take the fact that the lyrics here are incredibly bad then you should absolutely love this. Let’s face it though; lyrics have never been a great strength with the music of The Automatic; this is a band that has in the past made choruses out of such lines as ‘Let’s go see Raoul’, and ‘What’s that coming over the hill, is it a monster?’ also – hardly the height of lyrical intelligence.

Expect big things of The Automatic in 2008. Album number one is classified Gold and with ‘This Is A Fix’ The Automatic could well succeed further still and I truly do hope that the bands second album is a huge hit here in the UK and perhaps even stateside too.

Label: B-Unique Records
Release Date: August 18th 2008

Rating:
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