Reviews

Weapons Of Brass Destruction are an 8 piece band from sunny Weymouth, and are hitting the scene with their own unique blend of music that they like to call beach-ball-ska-core! You won’t have heard anything like it before – and all 5 of the songs on display here are really different, yet equally good and exciting to listen to. They have all the power of Capdown, yet the fun, summer loving feel of bands such as Solabeat Alliance and Less Than Jake at the same time.

On track 2, ‘KAPOW!!’ you can tell that the band are definitely fans of Capdown. In this track the band seem to have captured their vocal talent, and the general power that Capdown tend to possess. WoBD will definitely blow you away on this one – they certainly blew me away with it. This is one of the finest Ska-Core songs I have ever heard – everything about this song is strong. The horn section is perfect, there are some amazing drum beats, superb bass lines, and subliminal guitar riffs. Nothing at all sounds out of place on this track, making it an all around great tune. This track is fast, full of energy and shows that the band is made up of extremely talented musicians. Another great Ska-Core tune is track 4, ‘Bulldozers On The Playground.’ This is another fast, furious, and fun tune that will get you on your feet dancing about before you know it. The band really do have a strong talent for penning a good Ska-Core tune, so hopefully they will be able to work with what they already have and become an even stronger force.

It is on final track, ‘Ode To Jen’ that you really discover that the band are not only good at making heavy Ska-Core music. This track really does have a different feel to it vocally with the band not being as heavy as on some tracks on the CD. This track also features the help of Alex “Viking Skull” Robinson on congas, and is an absolute gem. This is more of a Ska Punk anthem, yet it is done just as well as some of the more Ska-Core orientated tracks on the EP. The fact that they are 8 men strong really allows for the Ska Punk to come in full pelt, as they have a 4 piece horn section that can really fire out that Ska Punk vibe. I really enjoyed this track and thought it was a great end to the CD – it is a fast paced track that leaves you hungry for more. It is definitely a tune that makes you want to check the band out live, and I am sure that this is where the band really shines.

I can imagine truly explosive live shows from WoBD and will have to check them out some time live to see if my prediction is correct. If you are in to your Ska-Core or indeed your Ska Punk then I think that this band will surely deliver as they are an extremely talented young band with a lot of fire in their belly. They only formed in February of this year so are just getting started really – but I can really see this band developing in to one of the best bands in the scene. The talent is certainly there, and the band has a hell of a lot of energy – I think that over the next few months things can only get better.

Rating:

You may or may not know this yet but recently the popular UK E-Zine Punktastic has formed its own label and ‘Un-Scene’ is the first CD to be released on the label. It features 16 tracks from some of the top bands in the UK right now, with the more established artists as well as artists just coming through in to the limelight that are worth watching out for. There will be a 6 date Punktastic tour in August featuring co-headliners My Awesome Compilation and Not Katies – two bands at the very heart of this compilation CD.

The CD all kicks off with Sonic Boom Six and them putting all their effort in to creating a catchy little opener for the CD. They also close the CD, and although their two tracks – ‘Un-Scene’ and ‘Boom Bye Bye’ are not bad tracks – it is definitely not the best material from the band. For most bands these tracks would seem like solid efforts, so anyone knew to the band might not realise it but Sonic Boom Six are actually a lot better than what they show on this compilation. Another band I feel has not come out at their best on this CD is Route215 and track ‘Jesus Was Sexy.’ It is definitely not a bad track but the production of it on CD really lets it down a bit. I have been informed that this is an amazing live track and I can truly believe this as the energy and passion is obviously present on it – it just hasn’t recorded too well and this really is a shame as they really are a class act.

There are a number of tracks that I really loved on this CD – one track I was surprised to find myself enjoying was the Tanaou track. I had never heard this band before and just expected them to be a bog standard Post-Hardcore band, but they really are something quite special. They have a lot of bite in their tracks – mega aggression, and some killer guitar riffs. This is definitely a band to watch out for I think as they are a truly talented bunch, with a top track in ‘Kissing Chaos Part One.’ The 3DBs Down track is another that I found myself really enjoying with their fun Ska Punk. They seem to combine the vocal talent of Fat Mike with cool Ska riffs, strong drum beats, and blinding choruses that will totally blow you away. I am proud to say that these guys are from Kent – they really are a glimmer of hope in what has come to be a sea of mediocre Ska Punk bands. Phinius Gage, Stories and Comets, Short Warning and also A Destructive Issue are also all amazing bands in their own individual ways and are all creating music that is just a bit different and exciting. You should check out these bands for yourselves – I am sure that in this bunch you will find a band to suit your needs whatever your tastes in music may be.

There are two tracks that really steal the show for me on this CD – with the awesome efforts from My Awesome Compilation and Matthew Reynolds respectively. Matthew Reynolds is the lead singer of Howards Alias – but he also somehow finds time for this awesome solo acoustic Ska project. It is completely different to what Howards Alias are doing at the moment, and really is amazing. He is such a strong talent and when he stops doing this solo project it will be greatly missed. Matthew Reynolds just has so much talent and you just get such a buzz from listening to ‘These Lights’ – it is truly unbelievable. The other track, ‘Wish You Well’ is completely different yet is equally as good in its own way. This is another acoustic track but is a far cry from the Matthew Reynolds track – this is acoustic Emo and is definitely at its finest. Even though I am not the biggest fan of the genre – I can definitely see that My Awesome Compilation are a band with a hell of a lot of talent. They are vocally very tight, and there is some strong acoustic guitar playing here that really helps the vocals along. I really like the way the backing vocals fit in with the lead vocals and help compliment them so well. You really have to hear it to believe it – but MAC have really created something special in this track and this could quite easily have been the finale to the compilation.

This is not the best compilation CD you will ever hear but it is definitely one of the better ones. I wasn’t too sure whether I would enjoy it too much other than the Matthew Reynolds track before I received it but it really does sound good and the compilation as a whole just seems to flow really well. Punktastic had to filter through roughly 250 songs to come up with the track list for this compilation and have definitely done a good job of it. A lot of hard work on the behalf of Punktastic has obviously gone in to the creation of this CD and the site has now really gone up in my estimation. I respect this website a lot more than I did before because they have created a compilation CD that really shows UK music in a good light, and at its very best.

Rating:

Ok, as far as compilation CDs go – this one is a pretty shoddy attempt! Its not that they didn’t get any good bands to go on the CD, its just that they really haven’t organised it at all well and there really is no running order to the CD whatsoever. This compilation was thrown together the day of the launch party for the CD so it had to be cobbled together in a couple of hours and pressed off without really giving it much thought.

There are 18 bands here and listening to the CD in running order will almost certainly make you cringe as none of the tracks follow on at all and it all just becomes a bit of a mess. The first track that comes on is Sparehed3 – this is quite an impressive track. There are some strong vocals, bass lines and riffs that really power the song home – trouble is there is about a 10 second period of nothing at the end of the track which really disrupts the CDs flow almost straight away. The next track is then a lot quieter than the first and you will have to alter the volume on the CD just to be able to hear The Mono Effect. Aside from the poor production of this CD – there are a few good tracks that really stand out to me to be quite good. As I have already mentioned, the Sparehed3 track is quite impressive and I will definitely be checking them out again but other bands that really appealed to me were Itch, Kneehigh, and Atticus. Problem is, I had already heard all of these bands CDs before so although the tracks found quite impressive – I had already heard them before so it was nothing new to me. This is not the fault of Hotwired as its not as if they made the compilation CD to impress me but the fact a lot of the bands I truly enjoyed I had heard the tracks before made it even harder to really enjoy the compilation. However, there was another track which really stood out to me – this being the band Angry Boy. I liked what this band were all about and think that the track that they have on this compilation CD is really quite cool and well worth a listen. It is called ‘Routine Something’ and really is quite a remarkable tune and I truly enjoyed listening to it.

I think this CD has now sold out – so you will not be able to get a copy of it but you will be able to listen to past shows that the songs will appear on if you go on to the Hotwired website. If you are looking to broaden your CD collection then bands of sound investment are definitely Angry Boy, Sparehed3, Itch, Kneehigh, and Atticus.

Rating: