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Crash Cartel – Dirty Little $ecret

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Crash Cartel have now split up and all that now remains is their ‘dirty little $ecret.’ This is seven songs which they recorded between the April and September of 2003 before deciding to call it a day. So after splitting up, all that is now left is the memory of the band with this great CD that they have kindly passed on to me to review.

This is a cool little seven track from the band featuring some of their latest and greatest tracks. I wouldn’t really know how to start putting a genre on these guys but none the less – what they do they do it well and pull it off with great style and have a hell of a lot of passion. There are some amazing tunes – from the skateboard anthem of ‘Dead Century’ with some heavy, hardcore vocals as well as more melodic, slower paced ones to great and thoroughly melodic ‘Lifes a Bitch,’ and ‘Decayed’ with its amazing little guitar hooks. These are all great tunes in their own way and are all extremely different in sound. The band have some amazing vocals, absolutely blinding guitar hooks, astounding bass lines and some incredibly strong drumming that will have you tapping pens on your desk to the beat of them (or that could just be something unique to me!) They have some awesomely catchy tunes that will have you singing along in to time – and really thoroughly enjoying yourself! The band have a lot of talent for what they do and as a result kick out some blinding little tunes – but sadly they are no more and I wont get to hear any more of their fabulous anthems. Sadly I never got to go and see the band live when they were around but if I had done I am sure that I would have had a great time – chilling out to their fabulous tunes!

This is one hell of a CD people!! Seven fine little tracks with never a dull moment – quite a rarity with CDs at the moment as usually you will find that there are 1 or 2 tracks that are considerably poorer than the rest but all of these are outstanding and really put a smile on my face. If you have not yet checked this band out then now is the time as the band may be history but their spirit will certainly live on with this ‘Dirty Little Secret.’

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The Murder Of Rosa Luxemburg – Everyone’s In Love And Flowers Pick Themselves

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The Murder Of Rosa Luxemburg are a five piece band that formed in 2002. They play some good Rock music and range from vocals that are extremely heavy, raw and distorted to vocals that are clear, concise and melodic.

There are 8 tracks on display here, showing off the bands great music and all of these eight tunes are of an extremely high standard and some of these guys are absolutely amazing musicians! The vocals on the tracks range from the depths of destruction to melodic and seem to flick between the two as if someone is flicking a switch somewhere! There are some awesome guitar riffs on display – they are highly melodic and pumped full of energy – and as for the bass lines, well they are absolutely blinding! The drums really help to create a good backbeat and at times really shine through.

There are eight great tracks on this CD but there are two in particular that really grabbed my attention. The first of these two tracks is ‘Infernal Music’ – a great track which kicks off with sounds resembling an alien frequency signal. After this, you are taken straight into some melodic guitar riffs which are played with great style and sound truly awesome. This then leads in to some melodic vocals and then every now and then there are heavy vocal breakdowns where the vocalist just seems to go crazy! There are also some strong bass lines and a great drum beat which really help to make it the amazing song that it is. The drum beat really stands out on this tune as it is performed to perfection and the guitar riffs are smooth, sleek and sexy creating a sound which is vibrant, energetic, and excitable. The other track which I found to be amazing was the awesome ‘Time And Death Invading The Arcadian Scene.’ They really storm through this track and that is why I like it so much – it has power, aggression and is a really high energy track. It has all you ever wished for – great bass lines, fiery heavy vocals, an amazing drum beat, and astounding guitar riffs. About half way through you think the track has come to an end but then it kicks back in to action and you realise that it was just a pause for dramatic effect! This is an aggressive, powering tune and that is what I like to hear in a tune so that is why I reckon it is one of the two best tunes on the album.

So if you like the sound of this band then make sure you check them out – either by buying this wonderful release from Undergroove Records or by going to one of their live gigs and getting the full experience of this wonderful five piece Worcester band.

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Circus Act – The Shape Of Drunks To Come

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Circus Act are a 3 piece Punk band from Southampton that have been in existence for over 6 years and in this time have managed to score gigs with Fine Before You Came, Geiger Counter, and even the amazing, legendary Snuff! Two of them also use to play for the same football team as the lead singer from the Cooper Temple Clause – and that’s their claim to fame for the moment!

With this CD they have produced four fine songs which show a hell of a lot of talent with some awesome vocals, strong bass lines, firing guitar riffs, and smooth drumming that will get your feet tapping away uncontrollably. They say that they are influenced by the heavier end of Emo and the softer end of Hardcore – this comes across in their music as although it is by no means Emo, it is not Hardcore either and seems to me to be a cool medium. They have some serious power in their music and this power makes them what they are – an extremely special Punk outfit.

My favourite of the four tracks on display here is the one that kicks it all off – ‘The Shape of Drunks to Come.’ This is a tune which really shows off what I was talking about – the power of the band on this track is unbelievable, they really kick off the CD in style and there is no hesitation about doing so. This tune has some amazing vocals, and these vocals are what give the track so much flavour and excitement – you want to keep on listening as they are so full of energy that it is unbelievable. There are also some outstandingly powerful guitar riffs, a good, strong drum beat, and bass lines which will drive a whole through your body as they are so strong! I am sure that the band were really pleased with this one as it certainly brought a smile to my face and I wasn’t even the one that wrote it so the band themselves must get great pleasure from knowing that they wrote, and performed this song as it is absolutely amazing!

Circus Act are a band with a hell of a lot of talent and they have really shown this to me with the four track CD which they sent me for review – it is full of gems that contain awesome song writing skills, driving vocals, spot on drum beats, and some expertly played guitar. This is definitely a band which is now on my A list of bands that I have not seen live that I really ought to soon! Check this band out if you are a fan of Punk music at all and I promise that you will not be disappointed!

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Fault~Line Demo

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This is a 4 track demo from the five piece Romford based hardcore band that is Fault-Line. All of these tracks are good with plenty of aggression in the music to keep you satisfied and making sure you never get bored. The band have great talent for what they do and the music which they are creating has so much power that it is unbelievable, they have stormy guitars, screaming vocals and frantic drumming. This is an awesome concoction and results in the wonderful sound that is ultra unique that is Fault-Line.

My favourite tracks are tracks two and four, ‘Love Honour and Decay,’ and ‘Daisy Cutter.’ ‘Love Honour and Decay’ is a cool track because you have the extreme, aggressive vocals and then you also have the melodic guitar riffs and also some strong emotional vocals so you get a good mix of everything really in this one and I think it works extremely well. The reason I loved ‘Daisy Cutter’ so much was because this one is pure aggression and it just shows that the band can pull off different styles equally as well as each other as this is raw aggression and it is pulled off with just as much style as ‘Love, Honour and Decay.’

The vocals on all of the bands tracks are extremely strong and I think this is what makes the band what it is as they really seem to hold the music together and they have obviously got themselves a singer with a lot of talent that can go from emotion to aggression like at the flick of a switch. The instrumental section also seems to have a lot of talent and seem to be well adjusted at what they do and can pull it off with much flare.

The band take influences from such New York hardcore bands as Strife, Bio-Hazard and Helmet and take what they have heard and combine it with their own ideals in order to create an extremely unique sound that is powerful and extremely aggressive. In two and a half years this band have really got a good thing going and with this demo CD they show that they are a band that are well worth checking out and when they say that they are one of the UK’s most explosive live bands I have no reason to doubt that.

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Aceface – God Save The Hooligans

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Aceface are a five piece London based band that plays Mod Punk in a traditional 1979 kind of style. This is an album packed full of Mod Punk gems with both a female and a male vocalist which makes it sound extremely cool as the two styles mix in really well to give you a nice mix and it gives you a bit of variation. The songs on this CD are very catchy, but not in a cheesy pop kind of way – the kind of way where the infectious tunes get stuck in your head and make you start stamping your feet to the sound of the beat. There is a very English feel about the music as it sounds extremely English and you just get the feeling that they are proud of being English and to be honest I am proud that they are English as they play some awesome Mod Punk and if they were from another country then they would probably not be anywhere as near as good as they are. The sounds of the songs are extremely varied and they seem to range from Mod to Rock and this is good to hear as it shows that the band can work on a number of levels and can produce a fine sound in several different genres which many bands don’t tend to do. The tunes have been recorded extremely well and the sound seems to be extremely refined with many great tracks that you can listen to and enjoy their good ole traditional English style. I think that all 13 of these tracks are good but I especially liked track 10 as I found it extremely exciting to listen to and I really felt the power of the music. This band contains members of Superyob and although their style is completely different to that of Superyob, they seem to have brought with them their tremendous ability to make great music. This CD really put a smile on my face and the 79 style of their music is performed to perfection and they would not have looked out of place way back when. Check this band out if you are at all interested in Mod Punk and I am sure that you will be pleasantly surprised by the great quality of this one.

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Aceface – Oxbridge Boys

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This is a two track single entitled ‘Oxbridge Boys’ from the Mod Punk outfit that is Aceface and is their single which is set to become a vinyl on September the 1st, released pm Bittersweet Records. It clocks in at just five minutes but this small amount is enough to realise how great this band are.

The single track, ‘Oxbridge Boys’ is a fast track showing off their great Mod/Punk inspired music and when they say it is an ‘adrenaline soaked monster of a single,’ they really aren’t kidding. This is an amazing little song with a lot to offer in its two minute entirety. There are some raging bass lines, fast paced drumming, crushing guitar’s, and blinding vocals. I think that this one is a really great tune with awesome lyrics and a catchy beat that gets stuck in your head with the infectious chorus really sticking in your mind. The second track here, ‘A Day In The Life’ is also a good track showing off more of the bands Mod Punk inspired outbreaks and adrenaline soaked action. This London band sure know what they are at and show this by producing two awesome new tracks that are sure to get the juices flowing. This track has some amazingly great bass lines, and extremely strong drumming that goes really well with the vocals of the male and the female contrasting. The way the two sex’s come through in the vocals is extremely great and really adds to the excitement of it all.

So two great tracks of Mod Punk fun with the single track being the better of the two in my opinion – but when you’re releasing a single that’s the idea isn’t it?! A really strong effort from the London band with an awesome follow up to their ‘God Save The Hooligans’ album. Aceface are a band that have superb talent for what they do and if they keep it up then they should gain a certain degree of success because this CD has shown more blinding action from the Londoners that are sure to put on a party to remember.

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Fallout40 – 4 Steps To Hypocrisy

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Fallout40 are a fast rising Derby band that ought to be bigger than they are, they prove this to me with this four track CD as it shows great promise from the young band.

Here the band has produced four tracks of outstanding music. The band really put their all into the music and as a result have come up with a top notch CD that is well worth checking out. They are a Punk Rock band with some superb driving vocals. The vocals are what make their music so great as they are extremely strong with hardcore tendencies that just totally blow you away. On all four of these tracks the vocals are what strike me as they are possibly the most amazingly performed vocals I have ever heard. The drumming here is also strong with it being played really fast and really rather aggressively – this works well with the vocals and makes way for a really cool CD. The guitar playing here also has to get a mention as with such great drumming and vocals it is really quite a hard act to follow but somehow the guitarist here manages to pull it off and actually makes a really great job of it! My favourite track here is ‘Useless Sentiment’ as it has great bite yet also contains moments of great melodic affair and this creates a truly awesome atmosphere. The guitar playing on this track is totally amazing as are the vocals and I just feel that this one is an all round great track.

This Derby band has great potential and a singer which they should try their hardest to hang on to as I feel that he is what makes the band what it is and if he were to be replaced then the band would just never be the same again as he is great and totally irreplaceable. If you like the sound of this band then check them out at Fallout40.co.uk as on this site you can download songs and witness this great band in action yourself.

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Fallen To – Which Side Of The Line? EP

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This is a double CD from the band that topped the MTV2 most wanted chart for a whole 10 days with debut video ‘No Allies.’ So they are not strangers to commercial appeal and hopefully with the release of this EP on Rough Justice Records they can once again achieve some degree of commercial success as they have worked hard to get where they are and deserve all the publicity they received for ‘No Allies’ and their album, ‘The Mark’ as it was a long trawl getting to there.

CD1 of this double whammy features the tracks Smoke & Mirrors, Sell The Vain and Re-Alignment (also features a CD-Rom video of Smoke & Mirrors.) This is my favourite of the 2 discs and it features tracks from their heavier side and this is my favourite disc of the two as it has so much raw aggression and power that you are automatically drawn into it and listen on as it is excitement filled and really gets the juices flowing. The guitar playing has a raw growl about it and the drumming is nicely paced to go with the aggressive vocals which they have to throw at you. It is an awesome mix and makes all three tracks special – but makes ‘Smokes and Mirrors’ stand out most as it is definitely a cut above the rest as it has anger and emotion at the same time with the emotion coming from the vocals and pure aggression being beat out of the instruments to make a fine, fine tune. So this is my favourite of the two as in my opinion it has the stronger tracks on it and is really quite heavy and aggressive which is always good to hear in a band.

Disc 2 on the other hand features their more melodic tunes with tracks Lost No.7, No Allies and Broken. Right from the set off you can tell that it is not going to be as aggressive or angry as the first disc as it is much more soothing and emotional with melodic, emotional vocals being used to accompany soothing beats that create a light sound and this disc is definitely the total opposite of the first one. It just goes to show that they can go from one extreme to another and pull it off and it really shows that although there is an aggressive side of their music there is also a side that is really emotion filled and mind soothing. The pace really slows down for this second disc and although it is still alright, I think they should stick to what they do best and make more tracks like on Disc 1 as that is the disc that I think people will buy this EP on the basis of.

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A Close Last – This Is What You Get

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OK, this is the latest CD from the band with four new tracks – well if you can really count the last one as a track.

The first two songs here are more melodic Punk Rock tunes with a good old A Close Last fashion. The first one ‘This Is What You Get’ is a melodic Punk tune for the most part with catchy lyrics, awesome vocals, lightning fast drumming and some outstanding guitar playing. The vocals remain melodic up until the last five seconds or so where the band put on a more hardcore front and the sound which this creates is really cool, making way for an awesome track. The second track here is also a melodic Punk tune and is entitled ’18.’ The vocals are again excellent, the drumming is fast and the guitar playing is superb – what more could you ask for in a tune?! These first two tracks are supremely catchy and show the bands talent for making songs that get stuck in your head and have great quality. The band really have a talent for making top notch, melodic Punk Rock and these two tracks are fine examples of their great talent. The third track however, ‘Please Leave We’re Closed’ is a short outburst of a hardcore track and at just twenty four seconds I’m not lying when I say short. There is really fast drumming here, whirlwind guitars and hardcore vocals. It is a cool track and is well worth a listening even though it is so short. The fourth ‘track’ is ‘Fuck My Job’ and clocks in at just three seconds. There is a drumming and guitar build up to saying ‘Fuck My Job’ in a hardcore kind of fashion.

So here is the latest CD from the great Scottish Punk Band that is A Close Last, featuring two songs of melodic punk rock and two songs of stunning raw edged hardcore music. It is only 5 minutes long but even still, this four track effort is a great CD and is absolutely bursting with gems. This band are sure to create many more great CDs and I look forward to hearing them because this is definitely a band to look out for in the future with strong tracks that show that they are an outstanding band that I believe have the capability of making it big. With a tour coming up I am sure that on this they can develop their fan base and really start to push towards becoming one of the leading acts in the UK.

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The Exploited – Fuck the System

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Here is the latest album offering from punk rock legends ‘The Exploited.’ It is a 13 track album that offers some mightily heavy tunes which you really don’t expect from a band of their age but they are still making albums and the albums that they are making are still of an extremely high standard. This is their eighth album and they show no signs of slowing down yet so you can expect plenty more punk rock attitude from where this came from. This UK band has been around for a while and from the quality of this CD you can tell that over the years they have gained even more experience and have been going from strength to strength and there sound is still raw, fast, and full of punk rock attitude! If you are a fan of the long going punk rock band which is The Exploited then I strongly suggest that you buy this one as it is one of the best albums that they have ever released and shows that old guys can rock just as hard (and even harder) than young folks. Check this album out and I am sure that you will not be at all disappointed by the UK punk rock legends latest attempt.

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