With a name that quickly conjures up feelings of novelty, of lightweight emo trash and of genuine disposability, Vancouver’s Fake Shark – Real Zombie! have, rather unwittingly, saddled themselves with a moniker that’s a quick turn-off. The epitome of just trying that bit too hard, it combines fantasy with punctuation and comes up with utter dross as a result. The young band may think they’re being “well random” (to use a horrible teen vernacular, popular at time of this release), but in truth, all they’ve done is give their project a name that’s going to be of potential hideous embarrassment to them in future years. Hell, maybe they won’t give a fuck – apparently Henry Rollins is a fan, so they’ll be thrilled, whatever. [In some ways, this revelation comes as surprising, given the punk icon’s musical past; in other ways, not so much: Rollins loves music from many genres- loves Beastie Boys, funk and even takes his professional name from a legendary jazz artiste.] Anyway…yes, Canada’s Fake Shark – Real Zombie! What of their music itself?
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
MICHAEL ADDISON – Resisting Fate
Singer-songwriter Michael Addison’s fourth release – 2012’s ‘Blinding Shadows’ – was a misguided affair. Promoted as an alternative rock album with “raw, hard rock energy”, any potential it had was killed almost instantly by too much studio shine and use of an offensive amount of vocal filters – the very antithesis of the raw energy he was said to create. Two years on, his eight track mini album ‘Resisting Fate’ doesn’t really resemble that previous release. Did Addison himself look back and feel the autotune abuse was a mistake? Maybe he did…but it’s just as likely he used it as a fashion statement since that disc came at a time when autotune was rife among many forms of pop (and indeed rock) music. ‘Resisting Fate’ is a warm and complete sounding release, with the good fortune of having lost the heavy filtering – at least a half-dozen of its numbers happy to stand on their own terms, not swamped by studio tinkering, or too heavily indebted to other artists.
LIMB – Limb
Taking their cue from the analogue sounding Sabbathed out sounds of Kyuss and Melvins (specifically ‘Stoner Witch’) dropped in the early 90s, Limb take similarly heavy vibes and slow, expertly structured and lumbering riffs to a high plateau. From the brief distortion and grinding guitar line that kicks off ‘Twelve Ghosts’, they make no attempt to hide any of their influences. The fuzz and sheer drive of their opening statement ensures those unfamiliar with Limb will instantly recognise this album as being doom/sludge metal of the highest order – that Limb are set to pummel their listeners with an almost narrow view towards a sonic range; often shifting from heavy to heavier still. At the point the vocals arrive – self-aware that they are not as important as the riff – you might expect things to fall away, but still the band maintain their intensity. Frontman Rob Hoey growls and shouts like a hybrid of Mastondon’s Troy Sanders and the mouthpiece from Brazilian stoners Son of a Witch, his delivery taking on a similarly untrained and unrestrained rasp; with only a few lines he ensures he makes them count – making himself sound hoarse in the process. Meanwhile, the rest of the band shift between slow, doom laden moods and occasional Fu Manchu-esque groove; while the change in speed is welcome, it doesn’t necessarily mean things are about to get lighter… The blend between the severely downtuned guitars and a rattling riff with clanging ride cymbal evokes a classic stoner/doom sound, akin to the grooves that filled the majority of Down’s classic ‘Nola’, a sound which suits Limb frighteningly well…and they know it. So much so, in fact, that it’s a model from which this debut full-length release rarely deviates: whether that is a good or bad thing, as always, will be solely down to personal taste.
THE MOTHERSHIP – Bright Side Of Dim
The Mothership’s debut album (‘Ten Miles Wide’, released in 2011) was a promising first effort. Although some of the material was generic, it was passionately played and its four stand-out cuts were strong enough alone to recommend listening. The band showed off a very solid approach to a retro riff, but with the woozy acoustic track ‘Ugly Love’ nestled at the end of the record [free mp3 here], the band showed they had more potential than merely being grungy revivalists. The “desert sessions” style of their quieter moments set high hopes for their sophomore release.
MAGNUM – Kingdom Of Madness
Although by the late 80s they had blossomed into one of Britain’s best loved AOR/melodic rock bands, Magnum’s career had somewhat shaky beginnings as a pub rock/covers band. While popular around the local haunts in Birmingham, playing covers was never likely to break them into the big leagues, but surprisingly, they gained the attention of CBS Records who released a cover version of ‘Sweets For My Sweet’ in 1975. The single flopped; Magnum and the label soon parted ways.