The early releases by Gibraltarian alt-rockers Breed77 (a name they choose to pronounce with a ‘seven-seven’) are very much workman-like affairs, often derivative of many US post-grunge/alternative rock bands. Even with hints of flamenco music colouring their sound, the song writing on those records often lacks the spark needed to make them stand out from the crowd.
Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews
FLEETWOOD MAC – Kiln House
At the time of release of their third album ‘Then Play On’ in September 1969, Fleetwood Mac were an absolute musical powerhouse. While the band were not as purist in their blues ethic as before, on that release, bandleader Peter Green’s song writing, vocal style and guitar playing are at their career peak, while Danny Kirwan shows increased confidence in his role as second guitarist and songwriter. As usual, both Mick Fleetwood and John McVie are faultless in their rhythm section duties. Despite the strengths, cracks are also beginning to appear: although Fleetwood’s third vocalist-guitarist Jeremy Spencer is credited as appearing, he made no contributions to the original LP.
A HERO FOR THE WORLD – A Hero For The World
A Hero For The World is a hugely theatrical musical project in the Tobias Sammett/Avantasia tradition spearheaded by to Scandinavian musicians, Jonas Kaasgaard and David Sivelind. Between them – and, naturally, with a helping hand from a few friends – they’ve created an eponymously titled epic is as big in intent as it is in name. This particular project plows deep into the power metal/battle metal niche and presents ten tunes with a maximum old-school metallic intensity.
POSTCODE – ZebrATP EP
In 2007, Postcode released their debut full-length album ‘Zebracore’. Both this record and it’s follow up (‘Zebraland’) were loaded with overdriven guitar lines, fuzzed out vocals and a truckload of distortion – as if The Breeders had merged with Bikini Kill and asked Steve Albini to record a bunch of songs on the fly.
THE COMPUTERS – Love Triangles, Hate Squares
The first two releases from The Computers showed a band firmly rooted in garage punk noise. In the three years between their debut EP (2008’s ‘You Can’t Hide From…’) and their first full length release (2011’s ‘This Is The Computers’), although still raucous, the band had tempered the rawest end of their sound with a hefty dose of punk ‘n’ roll. That shift was hugely influenced by the album’s producer, Rocket From The Crypt’s John Reis, bringing a new dimension to the band’s sound.