Reviews

Manifesto Jukebox – Manifesto Jukebox

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

Manifesto Jukebox are a Finnish Punk band and are one of the most respected Punk bands in Europe right now! None of these tracks have ever been available on CD before but thanks to Boss Tuneage they are now with tracks 1-4 off of the 7” they recorded way back in 1999 and 5-6 off of a split 7” that they released with I Excuse in 2001. From these six tracks it is easy to see why they are one of the most respected European Punk bands at the moment because they really do have something special going in their music. I really can’t wait until they release a new album because this introduction to the band has been a really pleasant one and has left me with a big grin on my face.

These Finnish lads play Punk like they mean it with fast drumming, buzzing guitar playing, slick bass lines, and vocals that will leave you with your tongue hanging out of your mouth due to their pure brilliance. If you like Punk then you will love Manifesto Jukebox for sure! I really like European Punk and the reason for this is that it is always so fresh, and exciting – it is the sort of thing that you want to hear when you wake up in the morning, listen to in the day and think about at night! That is how much I enjoy European Punk usually and this band is no exception to the rule. I only received this CD today yet have already played it many a time – it hasn’t left my CD changer since it came this morning! My favourite tracks are ‘A Good Sport’ and ‘Trail’ as these tunes are Punk how you’ve always imagined it – raw, pure, and 100% jam packed full of energy! ‘A good Sport’ especially with its awesomely heavy vocals, lightning guitars, and frantic drum beats! It may be short at only a minute and a quarter but its really a shock to the system as ‘Stains’ before it was really quite light hearted and melodic in comparison. It is Punk Rock through and through and it is always great to listen to tunes like that! You can’t go far wrong with heavy Punk in my book! This one put a big smile on my face and had me wishing I was there at the front of one of their gigs witnessing it live. It is raw and energetic and is sure to please fans of Hardcore. ‘Stains’ is a lot mellower with a slower pace, but it is still a totally amazing tune that is well worth checking out as the vocals are clean and fresh, there are some melodic guitar licks, and the drumming is still kept quite fast. The drumming really shines through on this track and I think this is because it is quite a bit faster than the vocals, and the two contrasting sounds give a really great effect.

So make sure you check this band out as whether they are creating a fresh sound, or hitting you with a hardcore number they do it extremely well and it is a really great CD to listen to. Six fine tracks of Punk Rock that make you appreciate that the European bands can play Punk Rock just as well as, if not better than any American band can!

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Maroon Town – Harmonization

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

This is Ska how it was meant to be – it is in a true Jamaican fashion and they really pull it off well. Personally I love Ska but there are not many bands around these days that play Ska in its original sort of style. Granted – the music does have a Hip Hop influence on some of the tracks but always keeps a laid back, Jamaican feel. They have both male and female vocalists and the two different sounding voices work well together, creating some ultimate skanking anthems.

There are fifteen tunes here and the album clocks in at just over 72 minutes, and despite its massive length it is never dull and is the perfect mix of Ska and Hip Hop which has a blinding horn section, amazing vocals, great keyboard playing and awesome guitars. If you like Ska then you will love this and if you like Hip Hop then you will also love this! Ultimately, if you are a fan of both Ska and Hip Hop then this is going to be the perfect band for you as they pull off both styles with a lot of style and flair! The Hip Hop is blended in to the Ska perfectly so that when the vocal style changes from Ska to Hip Hop it does not stick out like a sore thumb but actually sounds really good.

They have some really cracking tunes that stick in your mind like ‘Clarendon Calling,’ ‘One World,’ ‘Sunset In Calcutta,’ ‘Fix The Future,’ and ‘Sierra.’ I know I have named quite a few tunes here but it is really hard to say what are the best tunes on this album as they are all so good and all stand out as being fine little tracks that have the feel good Ska factor of Ska, yet the smack in the mouth you get from Hip Hop at the same time. It is really good stuff and is well worth listening to. ‘Fix The Future’ is probably my favourite Hip Hop style tune on offer as I just feel that it is a really powerful tune with amazing vocals, a good Ska beat, and just all round excitement and entertainment. They play Ska instrumentally and Hip Hop lyrics in this one and somehow it manages to fit together for them and that just shows how talented they are as a band to be able to get two completely different types of music to work well together and sounds great. They are extremely talented musicians that play great Ska music that makes you feel good about yourself and want to get up and dance – it makes you feel really great to be alive and kicking!

This is definitely one of the best Ska bands that we have in the UK and they really are great at what they do. This Ska / Hip Hop mix really works for me and I am sure that I am not the only one that feels that with the talent which this band possesses, they should be a lot better known than they are as they definitely impressed me in this CD and I am sure that they are totally amazing live as well. In fact, I think that their live set would probably be absolutely blinding and if I ran the universe then it would be compulsory to go and see this band live at every opportunity! If you are a fan of Ska, Reggae, or Hip Hop then definitely check this band out and prepare to be amazed!

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Make Her Cry – Writings On The Wall

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

This is a 2 track CD single attempt from the Somerset lads, Make Her Cry with their take on emo/post-hardcore. The two tracks here, ‘Writing On All Four Walls’ and ‘Entrance Of A Separated Couple’ show the band throwing everything into their music that they have to offer, with great emotion being pushed through with every single note and enough power to keep London running for a year. These two tracks are both extremely enjoyable and it is bands like this that make me glad that the whole emo/post-hardcore scene is there because in a sea of bands of the genre there are some great bands lying around and in order to find them you need to keep your eyes wide open at all times. My favourite of the two tracks is the second of these two tracks, ‘Entrance Of A Separated Couple’ as it has the great aggression of hardcore while also keeping a melodicness about it which can be found in emo, and the two combined genres seem to work really well in order to create an awesome sound and an absolutely stunning tune. Either one of the two tracks on show here could have been picked as the track to be their single but it just happens that the one that has been picked is ‘Writing On All Four Walls’ and I hope that the band can gain great success with the release of this single as they seem to be putting so much effort in and you can feel in these two tracks that they are bursting at the seams with energy and passion.

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Lowdown – Unknown

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

Ok, I must admit – when I looked at the promo sheet with all the info on about the band I saw that they are influenced by such bands as Slipknot, Faith No More, and Machine Head and came to the conclusion from this that I would not like this band. How wrong could I be?! This is an eleven track album effort from ‘one of Norway’s most promising metal bands,’ and from this I can see why they are one of the countries most promising bands – they are absolutely phenomenal!

Here are eleven tracks of amazing metal from a band that before this I had heard nothing about and probably would have had no interest in listening to if I had not been forced into reviewing it. This is blinding stuff – it has more bite than a rabid dog and is one of the rawest CDs I have ever heard. It has everything you could possibly wish for – buzz saw guitars, frantic drumming, highly energetic vocals and bass lines that shake up your insides completely. The vocals on this CD totally blew me away as they have such a raw edge and are done so well at the same time. They are raw, aggressive and full of energy and that is what I like about this band – they work on many different levels and the music really gets inside your head. ’25 Bullets’ is a great, heavy track that is sure to impress with its strong vocals, fast drumming and the extreme sound of the guitars. The guitars here kick out an awesome sound that gets inside your body and bounces around and works really well with the aggressive vocals. The drumming is fast paced to work with the guitar playing and vocals and this makes it an all round awesome track that is well worth listening to. This is my favourite track and shows the band to be a fine little act that deserve to get some serious media attention and with this CD are sure to get rave reviews from the major magazines such as Kerrang, Terrorizer, Metal Hammer, and Rock Sound. If you are after a Metal band with a raw edge then this is the band for you as they certainly have a raw edge and musically have a lot to offer. The vocals are infectious and get the drumming and bass lines get you banging your head and make you go absolutely crazy and forget about all of your worries. For the fifty five minutes that this CD is on you have an enjoying time and with such good tracks on offer you are bound to be impressed by the way that this band handle themselves even if you are not impressed by the music itself. Anyone can see that this is a truly outstanding CD as I am not usually a fan of the genre but even I can see its appeal and it really does appeal to me.

So, this is a fine little album that has aggression and furious bass lines that will smash through your body and is certainly not for the faint hearted. If extreme metal is your thing then check this little baby out and do so soon!

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Left Front Tire – 42 Ways To Lose A Friend

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

Here is the latest album offering of Punk Rock from those loveable rogues, Left Front Tire and as you can imagine is a great album with some twists. After 11 years this band are going strong, having:

-appeared on the American pie 2 soundtrack
-sold 500 copies of the independent release Social Icon
-headlined a Warped Tour date in Atlanta
-supported American HiFi, SR-71 and Butch Walker
-wrote and recorded soundtrack songs for New Line Cinema

They have now written their greatest album so far and they have really put their all into this one and it totally shows.

There are some great tracks here and also some interesting twists in the CD which will keep you listening. For example, track 6 ‘For What It Means’ the band stay true to their routes with a Country song that is much mellower than their other tracks on the album. They have really slowed down the pace for this one and created a Country tune that I’m sure any of the country greats would have been pleased with producing. Although I am not usually a fan of country, this one is done extremely well and it has made me change my mind about the genre. There are definitely good country tunes and the band sure has proved that with this one.

There are some great tracks on this CD showing off the bands great musical talents of combining raw, Punk Rock with pop sensibilities in order to create catchy tunes that are well worthy of the label of Punk Rock. One of my favourite tracks here is the first track, ‘Cheaters’ as it really gives the CD a good kick start and has you glued straight away. The lyrics of this tune are really catchy and get stuck in your head and get you singing along after a couple of songs where you know all the words! The drumming on this track is amazing and really stands out as it is fast paced and full of energy. The vocals on this one are also great with a Punk feel about them and also a catchyness about it which is created from the poppier side of things. It is an all round good tune and I really enjoyed this one as it is fast, catchy and full of fun – what more could you ask for in a song?! My other favourites on the CD are ‘Mental Vacation,’ ‘We Don’t Care,’ and ‘I Wish.’ These are all totally amazing tracks that really stand out. This band is one with a lot of talent and varied styles in their music which makes them exciting and they have the energy of youth, along with great experience in the industry which really is a good combination which allows them to create some stunning tunes. ‘We Don’t Care,’ for example could easily be a Green Day song at the start but then changes form and takes a more Rock fuelled stance. It is a great tune that is full of energy, excitement, and zest for life. This band sure are good at what they do and anyone listening to them can surely recognise that, cant they?!

The last track is another one of the interesting twists that this album takes as you see the band taking a more Emo position on ‘Saving The World.’ It is a good way to end the record, they come in with a fast song, leave on a slower, more emotional tune – I like it. This one really goes to show that they can pull off many different styles because it is completely different to all of the other tracks on this album yet is still just as amazing and is pulled off with just as much style. This one is slow, full of emotion and really puts a message across. The vocals are carried out extremely well on this one and I thought that the way it ended was good with the drumming and guitars almost stopping for the last few words. I knew straight away that this was the last track on the CD as the pace slowed down like it had not done before and it really finished off the album in style.

So there you have it, this is a nine track album from the Punk band, Left Front Tire clocking in at thirty minutes thirty two seconds and what an amazing half hour of music it was! This is a really exciting album and I am sure to be found listening to this CD many a time in the future because it is a really inspirational album and hopefully will inspire a new generation of Punk Rock fans to start up their own bands and hopefully end up making music as good as this! Check them out people as you really wont be disappointed and this album is available now so you have no excuse not to go and but it now!

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Last Out – Last Out EP

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

Last Out are a quartet from South Bucks and play emotive punk rock with patches of hardcore added in for good measure. In this self titled EP the band has produced six extremely fine tunes (seven if you include the hidden bonus track.) These tunes show passion, flair and style – and I believe that if these guys keep up the good work then it is only a matter of time before they get signed to a good UK label.

There are some excellent tunes here, with strong bass lines, good guitar riffs, great drumming, and absolutely amazing vocals. This band are really musically talented, with strong tunes that show power, energy, and excitement. If you are into bands that play Punk rock with an emotive edge and tinges of hardcore then this will definitely be your sort of bands. There are some absolutely blinding tunes on display, and my favourite of these tracks is ‘Amber Falls.’ This is a great track where the band shows both strong musical talent, and great song writing skills. It is a strong tune which I really enjoyed listening to as when you listen to it you can tell that this is a band that have great talent as it hits you on so many levels. The vocals in this track are extremely great, and are performed to a very high standard. They are tuneful and clear yet have great power to them that really grabs your attention. The drumming in this tune is also strong and there are some amazing guitar riffs that make you realise why you are listening to this band – because they rock hard. There is some awesome guitar work on all of the tunes and there is never a dull moment when this band is playing. With the odd hardcore burst out, and much tuneful, emotive Punk Rock this band make way for a very good listen and it is 36 minutes of pleasure and excitement.

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

King Prawn – Got The Thirst

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

Here is the album which was self financed by King Prawn and has now got itself a label and that label is Golf Records. It is a 14 track album of the usual mix of ska, punk, hip hop and metal. You never know what to expect with a King Prawn album as they draw so many influences and this is reflected in their songs as every one is different with many different genres intertwined to create that sound that only King Prawn can.

Each and every one of these songs is superb in its own right but for me there are some songs which really stand out from the crowd as they have that all original King Prawn sound and these songs are ‘The Dominant View,’ ‘Smoke Some Shit,’ ‘Raise The Banner,’ ‘Viva Devi,’ ‘Caught Inna Rut’ and ‘Satan’s Folly.’ These are all superb tunes and I feel that these are the key tracks on the album although all are great, they just manage to clinch it.

‘The Dominant View’ has been a top success on P-Rock TV and you can see why – it is an awesome song with fast vocals and a blinding chorus. It is one of those songs where from the first line you know it is going to be a blinding tune and a massive success. King Prawn have really managed to pull this one off and it is sure to be a crowd pleaser at gigs.

‘Caught Inna Rut’ is a powerful tune as it is fast and coming straight after ‘The Dominant View’ you expect it has a lot to live up to and I can honestly say it definitely does! It is an exciting tune and it really impressed me because the drumming is superbly fast, the guitar playing is beautiful and as for the vocals well they blew me away. This is an amazing song even by King Prawn standards and I really enjoyed listening to this one as it was full of angst and there are some superb shouty vocals as well as some quite melodic ones too. At 2 minutes 25 it is quite a short song and it leaves you gagging for more and this is great as you are then led into the crowd pleasing ‘Smoke Some Shit’ so there are three superb tunes in a row so this just totally blows you away!

‘Smoke Some Shit’ on the other hand is equally as good but is completely different. This is a song about the use of marijuana and it catches your attention as it is an extremely catchy tune and has a blinding chorus. From the voices used in this song it seems to be saying that marijuana is now accepted and used by all age groups and not really frowned upon as it is used so widely.

‘Raise The Banner’ is another great tune from this album as it is as unique as a King Prawn song can get. This band manages to blend genres and pull it off perfectly. This song is more of a metal ballad and is as great as all the other tunes I have mentioned if not better. So, this is a band that can pull off a variety of different sounding songs and have mass appeal as there is something here for everyone so you can not confine them to any one particular genre as this would just be wrong as there are so many different sides to King Prawn. They combine this Ska greatness with some RATM style vocals and surprisingly it seems to gel really well – I have learnt never to doubt what King Prawn do as mixing things you never would have thought of doing always seems to work great to make way for awesome listening. I really enjoyed this tune as it is Ska’y while being other things like hip-hop at the same time. Check this tune out as it is sure to please anyone – whatever style of music you like I am certain and will bet you money that you will enjoy this tune.

‘Satan’s Folly’ is another awesome tune from the King Prawn lads here as it is a truly exciting tune with some driving lyrics and slick guitar playing. This tune made me feel proud to class myself as a fan of the band. You instantly get in to it as it is such a cool tune and it chucks you straight in there. I really loved this one and I think that it is a key track on this album as getting near the end of a CD sometimes a band can get bored and start recording the songs for the sake of recording them but this is an awesome track and it really stuck out for me.

‘Viva Devi’ is again an awesome tune as it is an interesting and enthralling tune and it just really brought great music to my ears as it is such a dramatic change from the last tune on the CD but you manage to adjust for it and it is still well appreciated and a great track to chill out to.

You have got to admire this band for what they do even if you are not in to it (god forbid) as they are pure genius to pull off what they do and the way they remain rather underground is quite unbelievable as they deserve mass respect. Music like this does not come by sitting on your arse all day doing nothing – music like this comes from years of practice and improvements and this is exactly what the band has done. They have been around for seven years now and in this time they have improved greatly and I expect they will continue to better themselves and become better musicians as they show no signs of stopping yet. I am sure that they will continue to rise in the scene and gain more fans as they go along as they are not just any old band – this is King Prawn, a breath of fresh air in a scene of mediocre bands sounding pretty much the same. King Prawn are true musicians and I wish them all the best for the future.

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Kubrick – Reverie

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

Ok, here we have a single from the latest band to take to the scene, Kubrick. This is a new single that shows off their mixture of aggression, melody and emotion and each of these three tracks provides a different sound.

The first track here, ‘Reverie’ is a nice little number with melodic vocals to compensate for the hard edge of the guitar and drum playing. This is an interesting track, but is not really my thing as it is a bit too emotional for my liking and I prefer the harder edge but nevertheless, it is done well with awesome, stormy guitars and fast drumming. The vocals just don’t suit my taste but they are not done badly and is probably the best song to have picked for the single as Emo tends to appeal to more people than hardcore so there you go. Track 2, ‘How To Lose Friends And Alternate People’ is a live acoustic track and as you can imagine is extremely mellow and laid back. Although it is mellow and not usually my choice of listening, it is still done extremely well and I actually quite like it so well done to them here for creating a song so good that it converted me! You can really feel that it is live and the vocals are done exceptionally well. It is quite quiet up until about half way through where it suddenly becomes loud, so not the best of recordings but it is live so what do you expect. The last track here, ‘Reverie(Captains Of Industry Mix)’ is absolutely amazing and just totally blew me away! It is a pretty sick tune and is a deadly remix of a song which was vocally lacking. The old lyrics have been replaced with some rather more heavy, distorted lyrics and mixed with the great guitar and drumming that they already had with this one makes way for an astounding track and one which I have listened to many a time and will be listening to a hell of a lot more times too.

So there you have it, a three track single released on Rocket Science Records and its one for Emo fans out there really, unfortunately I am more in to straight up hardcore, so not really one of my favourites but the remix is cool and a lot, lot heavier and really appealed to my taste.

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Phema – Oomnoom’Shibi

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

This is a 12 track, first attempt album from the Milton Keynes based band that is Phema. It has taken over a year to complete and get mixed, and I must say that the wait has been worth it as this is a great first album from the band as they have great song writing skills and this is definitely why the record labels have been flocking around Phema. This is a band with a great following and the reason for this great following is hard work and rocking gigs – over time they have been refining their sound and they have come as far as the quality of the music they are writing on this album and it just shows that they have come a very long way since forming. They play pop rock in the style of JEW and I think that they actually do it getter than them so if you are a fan of Jimmy Eat World then definitely check this band out. The music which this band produce is hard hitting while also being rather emotional with a certain degree of poppyness about the music which makes their music not only quite hard but also extremely catchy and makes them a band that are certain to get you tapping your feet. Their vocal skills are amazing as they are extremely melodic with some aggression and emotion in there which gives it everything you could possibly imagine and it is what makes them such a stand out band for me. Before you have a chance to think about what you are listening to it seems to jump up and bite you in the balls and stops you thinking and just gets you listening. This CD has everything, soaring vocals, neatly tuned out guitars and a fast drumming beat to give it that nice finished off effect. So if you are a fan of Jimmy Eat World but are looking for something which is a bit more energetic then check this band out as they are certainly energetic and with such great song writing skills they really stand out from the bunch. They are a band of great talent that sit amongst many average ones which are meant to be of the same sort of genre.

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.

Turtlehead – Bleeding Hearts and Burnouts

June 4, 2004 by Rich Leave a Comment

After a 5 year wait, Turtlehead bring you their 3rd studio album, ‘Bleeding Hearts and Burnouts’ and after this ever so long wait they definitely don’t fail to impress! They have already toured and conquered the UK, Canada and Ireland, and next year are set to take on the USA for the first time. This one is being released on Leatherback Records so check it out and also check out this mighty fine label!

So here is a 14 track CD that has resulted from the band third full length outing. If you were worried that the bass lines were not going to be as stormy now that Rich has taken on the position you were very wrong because if anything, the addition of Rich has made the bass lines even faster and harder hitting. The bass lines totally blow you away and they are the fastest that I have ever heard this band play them. They are raging like mad and Rich does not disappoint with his fast, whirlwind approach to bass playing. The drumming is also extremely strong here with a great beat that is sure to amaze you with its astounding rhythm and amazing flair. Not forgetting the guitar playing of course – this is done brilliantly and all through the album really stands out as being something special. They seem to have sped everything up quite a bit and made way for their greatest CD so far and it really shows how much they have matured as a band over the last three years. Their vocals are something extraordinary, with amazing lyrics and superb effort – they manage to pull them off without the slightest sign of lagging and make them stand out like a fat man in a dress. The vocals help make every song extremely different and as the vocalist here is so talented he manages to vary the sound of his voice in order to make every track something different, and something extremely special. There are some great tracks here and some of my favourites are ‘Second Chance,’ ‘Non Sequitor,’ and ‘Think You’re Right.’ These are all top quality tunes and are my favourites as they have that extra flavour and truly have that x-factor. The bass lines rage on throughout them, the vocals destroy your mind, the drumming is frantic, and the guitar riffs are sharp enough to kill you. These three are definitely worth checking out, as is the album as a whole in general so if you are into good, sturdy Punk Rock then check out this band, ‘Turtlehead.’ They have immense talent for what they do and really manage to pull off their music with great style and every member of the band seems to have great ability. Rich had a lot to live up to when he joined this band but if anything he has made the band better than it was and served far past the previous standards. Since he joined the band they seem to have upped the pace and really got things going. There is great speed, effort, and enthusiasm here which makes way for an extremely great album from a band that is certainly not lacking in talent.

So, this is the bands third full length album and since the last they have turned up the pace, got a new bassist and improved a hell of a lot as a band! If they were good before then they are now amazing and worth even more of your time. I promise, if you take the time to buy this CD then it won’t be out of your CD changer for months (and not just because you can’t be arsed to take it out.) I heard ‘Don’t Count On It,’ and ‘Safe,’ a while back and liked them then but only now that they are part of the whole album do I fully appreciate it as you can see how special they are and what a great CD the band have created.

Rating:

Rich

UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.