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Hanoi Rocks – Street Poetry

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Having formed in Finland way back in 1979 and split up in 1985 after the death of their drummer, Hanoi Rocks reformed in 2002 and are now very much making the most of their second wind. It is an interesting one that a band should reform nearly twenty years on, however I am very glad that they did as since returning they have released a further three albums of varying quality. ‘Street Poetry’ is the latest album from Hanoi Rocks and was given its release through Demolition Records in the UK in September 2007.

Although only two of the original band members remain in the band, those being vocalist Michael Monroe and guitarist Andy McCoy; you should not let this fact put you off as Hanoi Rocks are still making some great music. Featuring the single ‘Fashion’ which went straight to Number 1 when released in Finland, ‘Street Poetry’ is thirteen tracks strong and is definitely worth a listen.

‘Street Poetry’ is an album which will not be to everyone’s taste, however for those of you that enjoy a good bit of Rock music I am sure there will be something here to keep you entertained. Not all of the tracks are particularly pleasing, in fact there are some that left me wishing for the end to come sooner rather than later, however I would still say that it is an album which is well worth your while listening to. The aforementioned single ‘Fashion’ for instance is definitely a track which I’d advise you all listen to. With its highly memorable chorus, strong guitar riffs, and fine vocal styling it is simply unmissable. It is not hard to see why the track went straight to number 1 when it was released in Finland back in May 2007. Three minutes long and always exciting and highly appealing, ‘Fashion’ is definitely one of the highlights of ‘Street Poetry’.

Much of the album is made up of exciting Glam Rock, and when listening to it is obvious that the band had terrific fun when writing and recording this one. Hanoi Rocks are a band who seem to have a great love for what they do, and although in my opinion some of the tracks here are a little disappointing – for the most part the album is highly impressive and great to listen to. Tracks such as ‘Powertrip’ and ‘This One’s for Rock’n’roll’ stand out massively so when listening to this album as they are terrifically infectious slabs of Rock gold. Every track on ‘Street Poetry’ is extremely upbeat and this is a great thing to hear when listening to the album. The band are in a genre of music which is never going to bring them a great deal of success in this day and age, however seemingly they don’t really care about monetary gain and are making this music out of their love for it which is always refreshing to see.

Although not exactly my favourite album of 2007, ‘Street Poetry’ is still one that I have listened to a large number of times since receiving. The positive energy which exudes from much of this release is just so intense that even if this is not particularly a genre of music that you’re fond of, you’re bound to gain some sort of listening enjoyment from this album. Clocking in at around the 45 minute mark, it is easy to listen to this album in one sitting and so long as you’re in the right mood you’re bound to enjoy most if not all of the tracks that are present here. When the band reformed after so many years away I am sure there were many who were unhappy that the Hanoi Rocks name was still being used given that only two original members remain, however after listening to this album and hearing the quality which some of the tracks possess; the reforming of Hanoi Rocks must surely be viewed by most as an extremely good idea.

Label: Demolition Records
Release Date: 3rd September 2007

Rating:
Review StarReview StarReview Star

Siouxsie – MantaRay

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Siouxsie & the Banshees were active as a band between the years of 1976 and 1996. They were a British rock band that released a grand total of eleven studio albums. Having split up in 1996, the band then reformed for a reunion tour during 2002 for their ‘Seven Year Itch’ tour. In July 2006 it was announced that Siouxsie Sioux had signed a recording contract with Universal Records as a solo artist, and this ‘MantaRay’ album was resultantly released in the September of 2007. The album has enjoyed glowing reports from the press and can definitely be viewed as a strong success.

With Siouxsie Sioux on vocals and a whole host of other performers credited for their contributions, ‘MantaRay’ is an album which showcases a vast array of instruments ranging from the standard set up of drums, bass and guitar, right through to the less commonly heard instruments in recorded work of the sort such as the xylophone and ukulele. The result of this instrumental experimentation is quite simply phenomenal and ‘MantaRay’ is consequently an illustriously progressive recording. Not the standard sort of release I would tend to listen to, ‘MantaRay’ is an album which captured my imagination entirely and held me utterly engaged from start to finish. Although only ten tracks long, each of the ten on display here are remarkably well written and show a masterful utilisation of the instrumentation available.

As the album begins with ‘Into A Swan’ it is clear that the album will be extremely experimental and that within ‘MantaRay’, Siouxsie will never confine herself to one musical genre. Sexuality seems to exude from the pores of this track and from the album in general in fact. The guitars buzz, the vocals crusade almighty, and everything just seems to come together in a track that although entirely disjointed is also staggeringly and strangely together. As ‘MantaRay’ progresses, the intricately weaved musical complexities continue to shine through and at no point does the album ever fail to impress.

Throughout the album Siouxsie showcases her love for a fine hook and the music will often here pack a powerful punch with a grinding and gruelling guitar riff. ‘Loveless’ is one track which springs to mind that does exactly that. Sporadically throughout its four minute course, a killer guitar riff will surge through and really shake things up with a dark and dangerous injection of power. Although the powerful guitar riffs are not constant, when they do hit, they cause great impact and are monumentally memorable.

When listening to the album it was my opinion that some of the tracks found here could easily be used as theme tunes for a James Bond film. On more than one occasion I had almost a deja vu feeling whilst listening to ‘MantaRay’, believing myself to have heard the track before within a Bond film. This is not the case, however may well be something for the people behind the Bond films to consider for the future. Take a good listen to ‘Here Comes That Day’, that should give you a good idea about what I’m talking about here. The songs are probably too dark for 007, however they certainly there’s definitely a touch of the espionage agent about them and the tracks sure have a license to thrill.

In an album like this it is always hard to put a finger on what tracks stand out most as the album is by all accounts a mood piece, one that needs to be listened to in its entirely, and one that is packed full of excellent tracks that work best in their rightful place as a part of ‘MantaRay’. Remove any of the tracks from their places and disturb them from their context in the album and they just don’t quite mean the same thing. Whilst each track tells a story and tells it well, it is their well placed and well ordered format in the album that makes them work the way they do, with each track an integral piece of a complex and compelling jigsaw.

The first solo release from Siouxsie Sioux is one which is without doubt worth listening to. Fans of any and all types of music can surely take something from listening to this album as it truly is a musical masterpiece, the beauty of which is almost unexplainable in its magnificence. The music is multi dimensional, with Siouxsie more than proving her worth as a solo artist. Her voice is amazing, her creative vision unbelievable, and the album is all in all alluringly exquisite. Why on earth Siouxsie Sioux has left it until now to let loose her first solo release is beyond me as this album truly does bridge upon perfection. Whilst ‘MantaRay’ may not be instant and will require at least a couple of listens before you can truly appreciate its excellence, you’ll find that there comes a point where it just seems to click and you suddenly concur that this is perhaps one of the greatest albums you have ever heard. ‘MantaRay’ was most certainly one the the stand out albums of 2007.

Label: Universal
Release Date: 10th September 2007

Rating:
Review StarReview StarReview StarReview Star

The Steeples – Britney’s Tears

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With a strange and at times massively irritating vocal style, The Steeples are a young band that have the potential tag line of ‘future darlings of the NME’ written all over them. With a sound not too dissimilar to that of The Libertines, tracks ‘Britney’s Tears’, ‘Tight Tina’, and ‘Brown Eyes’ here really do very little for me. Already having been given XFM’s Single Of The Week, the lead track ‘Britney’s Tears’ has a sound that is all too familiar and has in my opinion already been done to death before, and for that matter been done a hell of a lot better than it has been done here.

To look at, the band appear to be trying to mimic The Libertines entirely, with lead singer Andy Culshaw at all times trying his utmost to do his best Pete Doherty impression, and a member of the band even featured not too subtly wearing a Libertines t-shirt on the front cover of the CD. Whilst ‘Britney’s Tears’ is all too familiar, as we progress through to second track ‘Tight Tina’, the lyrics are just so awful that it is incredibly difficult to listen to the track without cringing in embarrassment for them. Lyrics seem to be at a minimum and are merely repeated over and over as the track progresses, fast becoming tiresome and highly detestable.

With closing track ‘Brown Eyes’ the band show no signs of improvement and slowly drudge their way through a poorly written track which drags along and never really seems to get going. The vocals at times go completely out of tune, the musical accompaniment is depressingly basic, and all in all ‘Brown Eyes’ is just a song that I would never truly listen to out of choice. The band stumble their way through three tracks on this CD, and although seemingly trying their best to sound like The Libertines; their sound is instead at times more akin to that of Chas & Dave (no offence intended Chas & Dave).

Rating:
Review StarReview Star

Fall Out Boy – Infinity On High

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Fall Out Boy are an American Pop Punk band hailing from the suburbs of Chicago. Consisting of four members, the band have been going since 2002 and have in this time released three albums and an eight track mini-album. Currently residing on Island Records, their home since 2003 – ‘Infinity On High’ is the bands third album and saw a commercial release back in the February of 2007. Featuring fourteen tracks (15 including the UK Bonus Track), ‘Infinity On High’ is arguably Fall Out Boy’s finest album to date.

I have always had somewhat of a soft spot for Pop Punk, and as such the music of Fall Out Boy is perfect for my liking. It is fantastically fun pop music which is excellent to dance to, and with the exception of a few – the tracks on display on this album are meticulously well created and crafted. Opening with ‘Thriller’, the album instantly grabs you and garners your full undivided attention. A perfect opening anthem, ‘Thriller’ features a spoken intro and outro by the American rapper Jay-Z. In addition to this, the track was produced by Jay-Z and Babyface also; two of the finest faces of Hip-Hop and R&B accordingly. Although this is by no means the strongest track on the album, it is still a decent opening and when listening to the album for the first time it leaves you hotly anticipating what the band will have in store for you as the listening experience continues.

From ‘Thriller’, the band progress into the track ‘The Take Over, The Breaks Over’ which was chosen as the third single to be released from the album. With track number two the band continue to impress, and ‘The Take Over, The Breaks Over’ is without a doubt a fine track with a chorus of epic excellence. At this early stage in the album the best is yet to come however, and the first real moment of glory comes in next track ‘This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race’, the album’s lead single. When I first heard this track before the album was released, I wondered how any other track on the album could possibly compete – it’s perhaps one of my favourite Fall Out Boy tracks of all time and will no doubt put a smile on the face of anyone who has ever before enjoyed a song of theirs in the past. ‘This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race’ has everything that you could possibly ask for in a Fall Out Boy track – it’s fast, it’s fun, and best of all it’s fantastically catchy with a chorus which is bigger and better than you will ever have heard the band before. At a mere three tracks into a fifteen track album, you begin to feel that the band have perhaps peaked to soon, and therefore from here on in it could all be a downhill trek. Fortunately this is not to be, and as the album carries on the band continue to flourish.

For me, it is ‘Thnks Fr Th Mmrs’ which provides the album with its crowning glory. At the album’s centre point, ‘Thnks Fr Th Mmrs’ is probably one of my favourite tracks of all time, let alone my favourite by Fall Out Boy. There is just something about this one which captured my imagination right from the very first time I listened to it. Over the months, this has become my most played track by far and yet still I fail to tire of it and instead my love for the track continues to grow. Produced by Babyface the track is at no point tiresome, and despite the squeaky clean production possesses an unexplainable rawness about it. The guitars are excellent, the vocal harmonies verge upon perfection, and the drumbeats are colossally crushing. To summarise; ‘Thnks Fr Th Mmrs’ is without a shadow of a doubt a track which I would recommend to everybody out there.

When I think of the ‘Infinity On High’ album, one of the first tracks which will spring to mind every time is ‘Hum Hallelujah’. This is a track of which the lyrical content is reportedly about Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz attempted suicide whilst listening to Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’. The track samples the aforementioned Leonard Cohen track in it’s four minute duration, and is a beautifully written piece of music which provides for a soothingly satisfying listening experience. It is unlike anything Fall Out Boy have ever attempted before and I commend the band for their efforts here as in my opinion they have pulled it off with a high degree of style and flair. It is always nice to see when bands attempt something a little bit different, and when they manage to pull it off as has been done here then the result is always a joy to behold.

Whilst ‘Hum Hallelujah’ is a prime example of Fall Out Boy trying out new things and pulling it off; trying things out can ultimately backfire which was the case with ‘Golden’. I have never been able to listen to this album track without feeling completely empty inside, free of the pleasure I usually enjoy when I listen to the music of Fall Out Boy. The track is a slow and unenjoyable effort in which the band meander their way through two and a half minutes of a poorly put together filler track. I literally have nothing positive to say about this track and feel that it need not have been included on the album as my belief is that this track detracts from the overall exceptional quality of the album.

A common theme amongst recording artists in recent years has been to include a ‘Bonus Track’ or two when releasing an album. A few years ago it was not uncommon that a band would release their album one month only to follow it up a couple of months later with a ‘Special Edition’ release which would generally include a couple of bonus tracks much to the frustration of those that bought the album on the day of release. Thankfully, bonus tracks tend to be included at launch now and this album was no different including that of ‘G.I.N.a.S.F.S’, which for all those interested is a synonym for ‘Gay is Not a Synonym for Shitty’. Whilst bonus tracks can at times come across as somewhat of an afterthought of which you’d perhaps rather have done without; ‘G.I.N.a.S.F.S’ certainly doesn’t come in to this category and is in fact a track just as good as many of the other album tracks present. It is a fun track which opens with a strong guitar riff, possesses a lethal chorus, and will have you singing along in no time. It is oddly perhaps another favourite of mine from the album and could I believe be released commercially as a successful single.

With all tracks other than one on the album having impressed me to varying degrees, I would have to say that all in all the ‘Infinity On High’ album from Fall Out Boy is an overwhelming success. There are a high number of stand out tracks here present, and they certainly provide in my opinion for Fall Out Boy’s finest album to date. Fall Out Boy’s ‘Infinity On High’ has been one of my favourite albums of 2007, and I for one can not wait for the band to haul themselves back in to the recording studio to provide us with album number four. If the band can improve upon what they have come up with here then I will be shocked as ‘Infinity On High’ truly is an amazing album which I feel I will certainly be continuing to play for some years to come. It is hard to listen to the music of Fall Out Boy without allowing for a smile to seep across your face, and whilst there will undoubtedly be those out there that will not find this album enjoyable – I myself found Fall Out Boy’s latest album offering extremely impressive and highly enjoyable.

Label: Island Records
Release Date: 5th February 2007

Rating:
Five Star ReviewFive Star ReviewFive Star ReviewFive Star ReviewFive Star Review

Razorlight – Razorlight

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Razorlight were formed as a band in 2002 by the singer-songwriter Johnny Borrell – a man who was reportedly a stand-in bassist for The Libertines for a short space of time during their early days before getting signed. Notoriously arrogant, Johnny Borrell is a man who is hated by many as in fact is this second album from the band. When released in July 2006, this self-titled second album was greeted with a mixed reception from the critics; even being nominated in the Worst Album category at the 2007 NME Awards as voted by the readers. Although their magazine writer clearly enjoyed it having rated the album an 8 out of 10, apparently this enthusiasm was not shared by the readers and to be honest that is entirely understandable.

Whilst I thoroughly enjoyed the first album from the band, particularly the single ‘Golden Touch’ – I can’t say that I share the same enthusiasm for their second album, and in fact at times found it to be entirely tiresome. Sure, there are a few tracks that do stand out and are enjoyable, but for the most part the album is unmemorable and in fact quite dreary and depressing. Even when the album is good, it’s not quite great with the dreary factor ever present in each of the album’s ten tracks. ‘In The Morning’ gives the album a promising opener, however next track ‘Who Needs Love’ is really rather dull. On the subject of ‘In The Morning’ however, this track encapsulates everything that I love about the band; it is lively, energetic, and exciting. A joy to listen to, ‘In The Morning’ could not have possibly provided the album with a better opener, however the fact that it is perhaps the album’s finest moment is quite a depressing prospect.

Although ‘Hold On’ is a semi-satisfying track, it is not until we reach ‘America’ that we are again treated to a bit of class and excitement. I absolutely love this track and often find myself singing along as I listen to it. With a strong chorus and exactly the kind of drum beat that I love – ‘America’ contains the perfect formula for a decent track and certainly does not disappoint. ‘Before I Fall to Pieces’ is likewise a quality offering from the band, and is exactly the kind of music which Razorlight should be writing every time. Forget the fillers lads, concentrate on more tracks like this and perhaps next time the critics wont slam you quite so hard. A joy to listen to, ‘Before I Fall to Pieces’ is one you can listen to over and over without ever really tiring of. There is a feel good factor about the track which gives it an addictive quality, so one listen is never quite enough. If only the same could be said of the album as a whole.

‘Pop Song 2006’ is again undeniably a top quality track, another which will get you in the mood for singing and dancing. It is a confusing one that a band that can at times get their guitar riffs so perfect can at times get them so wrong. ‘Pop Song 2006’ hits all the right notes for me, and although it does seem to drag a bit towards the end I would still consider it to be one of the albums finer points. Other than this I think that I am pretty much empty handed for positive things to say about this album other than the strength which the band show in penultimate track ‘Back To The Start’. It is not the wordiest of tracks, but I find it to be strangely enjoyable a song – one I find myself listening to an awful lot in fact.

Being a drummer I find that with some bands, their drumming draws me to them more so than any other aspect of the music can. Razorlight are a prime example of one of those bands, and I find their drumming style to be oddly hypnotic. It is not massively technical, but there is just something oddly drawing about it which ropes me in every time, even when the rest of the track falls flat on its face. I have always felt this way about the drumming style of Razorlight, and in fact on their first album there was a DVD included featuring live renditions of a number of the album’s best tracks which I thoroughly enjoyed for watching the drummer do his thing live in action. So, even when the album seemingly only consists of fillers (around 50% of the time I would say) there is still some enjoyment to be gained from the listening experience.

The self-titled second album from Razorlight is a hard one to sum up. It’s an album of two halves it would seem; one half filler, one half killer. It’s not that simple however as the divide is not clear cut and in order to get to the stronger tracks you will have to trudge through the inferior tracks in the process. Whilst I would recommend this album in part in that there are some decent tracks on display here and the drumming is of an excellent standard, I would also discourage listening to this album at the same time as it is half bad after all. Whilst Razorlight’s début album was fresh and exciting, their second shows signs of the band going stale and this is really rather sad to see. ‘Razorlight’ as an album had great potential, however it would seem that it has failed to show the best in the band and is therefore somewhat of a disappointment.

Label: Mercury Music
Release Date: 17th July 2006

Rating:
Review StarReview StarReview Star

Maroon 5 – Won’t Go Home Without You

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Maroon 5 are perhaps the weakest band in ‘rock’ music right now. Their sound is about as hardcore as a Barbie doll in a pink suit, and for what their stage presence is worth they may as well be cardboard cut-outs. It will come as no surprise then that ‘Won’t Go Home Without You’ is a supremely weak single from the band which failed to impress me on any level. Every time I hear this single I just seem to despise it even more, from the irritating vocals right down to the infuriatingly plodding pace of the drum beat; everything about this track is entirely loathsome. Before releasing their album ‘It Won’t Be Soon Before Long’, it had been three years since we had heard from the band and I was hoping their extended hiatus would have meant the end of Maroon 5; unfortunately there was no such luck and the band are still about and their music still as irritating as ever.

Rating:
Review Star

Kaiser Chiefs – Love’s Not A Competition

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When Kaiser Chiefs burst onto the UK music scene back in 2005 I found their music intriguing and the band themselves energetic and exciting. Their début album pleased me massively and was perhaps one of my favourite albums of 2005, most certainly the best début album I’d heard in a long while. Fast-forward to 2007 and the Kaiser Chiefs are onto album number two, only now without the flair and energy that made them so successful when they first emerged. Their sophomore effort ‘Yours Truly, Angry Mob’ I found to be a huge disappointment, and whilst listening found myself drifting off all too easily. ‘Love’s Not A Competition (But I’m Winning)’ was the fourth single to be lifted from the bands second album and is an ‘interesting’ one to say the least. With keyboards throughout likening the sound to that of Coldplay, the music of Kaiser Chiefs is here completely empty and devoid of any real sense of life. Whilst the chorus is catchy enough and will no doubt have you singing along as was always the case with their tracks, there just seems to be something missing here and the track therefore never really gets going. Whilst Kaiser Chiefs once possessed a great deal of energy, their music now embodies nothing more than complete emptiness.

Rating:
Review StarReview Star

The Proclaimers – Whole Wide World

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‘Whole Wide World’ is the best track from The Proclaimers most recent album ‘Life With You’. The thing I find most amusing about this fact is that ‘Whole Wide World’ is in fact a cover of a Wreckless Eric track, and aside from this one track I have nothing positive to say about the bands album whatsoever. Credit where credit’s due though; The Proclaimers have done a good job of covering this track and despite just how much the vocals of The Proclaimers do grate on me, I must concede that I do actually quite like this one and have listened to it quite a number of times. Whilst The Proclaimers will not be everyone’s cup of tea and are in fact not mine either, there is no denying that this is a well produced and well constructed cover of a track which is now more than thirty years old.

Rating:
Review StarReview StarReview Star

The Weakerthans – Reunion Tour

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The Weakerthans are a Canadian four-piece Indie Rock band with elements of both Punk and Folk also present in their sound. The band actually formed in 1997, and over the past ten years have come out with three albums including this latest effort ‘Reunion Tour’. Their 2003 release ‘Reconstruction Site’ is perhaps their best album to date, however none of the three could by any means be considered to be at all bad. Signed to Epitaph Records, it is no surprise that The Weakerthans have had the success that they have done, and they fully deserve the fan base that they have built up for themselves over the years. Although by no means massive, the bands intelligent and introspective lyrics have proven to be more than enough to win over countless crowds of people throughout their ten year history.

‘Reunion Tour’ gets off to a start with an interesting little number in the form of ‘Civil Twilight’. The track opens the album well and has you eagerly wishing to listen on and see what the band has to provide you with in this latest album. There is something strangely hypnotic about this one, and the more times I have listened to it the more I have begun to appreciate and enjoy listening to it. It is a track that I have liked ever since the first listen, but as time has gone by have found myself listening back to ‘Civil Twilight’ increasingly more so; a definite grower of a track. This could actually be said about the album as a whole, as even if you don’t ‘get’ it the first time you listen, the chances are that by the third or forth time of listening the album will have you well and truly hooked. From ‘Civil Twilight’, the band progress on well and move into the fantastic track ‘Hymn of the Medical Oddity’, the track I would consider to be the best of the album. Right from the opening guitar riff this one had me hooked, and as the vocals begin and drums start beating the track grows and flourishes into something really rather special. It is perhaps one of the best Indie tracks I have heard all year actually; one I would rank amongst other favourite tracks of mine of the sort such as Death Cab For Cutie’s ‘Sound Of Settling’, and Spoon’s ‘The Way We Get By’.

As the album progresses, The Weakerthans more than prove their worth and come forth with a number of decent offerings that provide some great listening enjoyment such as the skilfully executed ‘Tournament Of Hearts’, and the ever exciting ‘Night Windows’. Both tracks are perfectly structured pop tracks oozing with appeal, laden with huge guitar hooks and the most meticulous of choruses. Unfortunately however, the vast majority of this album is distinctly lacking in stand out tracks and for the most part meanders along and never really leaves much of a lasting impression. Most of the eleven tracks are really quite forgettable, and although ‘Reunion Tour’ can provide you with the perfect background sound to relax and de stress yourself, the majority of the tracks are likely merely to wash over you. Having said this, the band do provide more than enough entertainment on this record to keep your full attention throughout the duration of the listen and is therefore by no means a failure. It may be true that it is lacking in excitement, but it’s certainly not a bad album and will most likely put a smile on the face of the majority of its listeners at one stage or another.

A bad thing about The Weakerthans I have always found is that after a while, the singers voice really begins to grate on me. I do not find this if I listen to tracks singularly, however when I listen to the bands albums as a whole, the voice of front man John Samson can get thoroughly irritating. I’m not too sure what it is about the man’s vocals, but the only way I can think to put it is that the sound of his voice is at times reminiscent of Tom Green in ‘Road Trip’ during his performance of the ‘Tiny Salmon’ song. If you’re not sure what I mean there then I suggest perhaps that you look it up on YouTube or somewhere like that, then you’ll get a general idea of where I’m coming from. The vocals can sound strained, and at times even comical. The lyrics are always intelligently written, however the way that they are pulled off vocally is not always so strong.

Although this latest album from The Weakerthans breaks no new ground, it is still not a bad album. The harsh reality of it all however is that it’s just not as good as their previous offerings. Whilst the music the band are creating is still tender and heartfelt, it lacks that immediacy it possessed in previous albums. Newcomers to the band will surely be impressed with what they find here, however long term fans are likely to be left disappointed. Unfortunately for the band, in this album The Weakerthans can at times comes across as the perfect band for the OC soundtrack; uninspired Indie stalwarts. The tracks often sound ‘nice’, however often definitely border on bland. This album is certainly not their best, however I still feel that it is still worth a listen. If you’ve not listened to The Weakerthans before then the chances are that you’ll perhaps be quite impressed with what you find here as in truth it is a pretty decent Indie album, but when you’ve been spoilt by hearing their first two albums; ‘Reunion Tour’ just doesn’t compare.

Label: Epitaph
Release Date: 29th October 2007

Rating:
Review StarReview StarReview Star

Enter Shikari – The Zone

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Having formed in the suburban area of St. Albans back in 2003, Enter Shikari are one of the most hard working UK bands in existence. To date the band have performed well over 650 live shows, and characterised by their bricolage of glow sticks and mosh pits are a joy to behold. In the November of 2006, Enter Shikari became the second unsigned band in history to have played a sold out show at the London Astoria; the first band to have achieved this having been The Darkness. Enter Shikari have achieved great success for themselves over the past 12 months and they need not thank anyone for that but themselves. For their hard work and dedication Enter Shikari were approached by a number of large record companies, however turned down these offers and their début album ‘Take To The Skies’ was thus released through their own Ambush Reality label, and once more they have chosen to release their material themselves with this Mini Album ‘The Zone’. Comprising of eight tracks this is basically a collection of B-Sides and Rarities from the band and although their album has sold over 100 000 copies to date and has therefore been certified ‘Gold’, this latest release from Enter Shikari is unlikely to achieve anywhere near this amount of success.

Kicking off with ‘The Feast (demo)’, if you’re a fan of the band listening to this one then even at this early stage you’ll already be beginning to pose the question as to what exactly the band are playing at in releasing this Mini-Album. The quality of this track is astoundingly poor, the drums in particular being extremely badly recorded and providing a sound that is tinny and distant. It’s not a promising start to the CD whatsoever, and as the Mini Album progresses things just seem to go from bad to worse. Three of the tracks here are Demo’s so are obviously not going to be exceptionally well recorded, whilst another is from a BBC Live Session with Zane Lowe which has not been pulled off particularly well, one is a poorly executed remix, and the remaining four are all B-Side’s that should rightly have remained so. Together these eight tracks seem to offer up a recipe for disaster, a sure fire compilation of eight tracks that were never truly destined to be packaged together and sold.

It’s difficult to draw positives from a CD of tracks that basically never cut the mustard in the first place. One track I do feel faired well in its outing here however is the Mini Album’s seventh track ‘Mothership’. Originally released in August 2006 as a download only single, the track impressed me back then and still impresses now. It is a finely crafted song, however even the inclusion of this track on the release is really of little use or appeal to fans of the band given that the track was finely tuned and properly mastered for inclusion on their ‘Take To The Skies’ album. A re-issue of a Demo track we’ve since been provided with a finished version of is as far as I’m concerned entirely unnecessary, even for the most hardcore of Enter Shikari fans (the majority of whom will most likely have downloaded the Demo when it was digitally released anyway).

I hate to say it, but ‘The Zone’ for me seems to serve no other purpose other than to make a few extra pounds by putting out a release that never should have happened. Usually this would be the point where I’d point the finger at the major label for cashing in on a band and trying to squeeze as much out of them as possible, however given that the band themselves are the ones that own and run their record label; there is no one to blame here other than Enter Shikari themselves. I did not see this release coming from the band, nor do I feel that fans of theirs should humour them in purchasing this scrappy mess of a Mini Album. At a price of £4.99; ‘The Zone’ is grossly overpriced for what it is and is a CD I strongly suggest you avoid the purchase of. By all means however check out the bands ‘Take To The Skies’ album as it is a terrifically strong release and I am sure that you will be impressed with what you will find there. There is currently no talk of an album number two in the woodwork, but mark my words; if and when it does indeed surface for release, I can guarantee that it will make for a highly explosive listening experience.

Label: Ambush Reality
Release Date: 12th November 2007

Rating:
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