Although presenting themselves in two very distinctly different moods, on their 2014 EP ‘Absence Makes The Heart Forget’, San Francisco’s Hey Hallways’ work always shows a huge DIY spirit and self-belief. Their obvious willingness to pay homage to some great punk and garage rock sounds from the tail end of the 1980s will win over fans of the style almost instantly. The first half of this release has so much energy within it’s crudely recorded material, while the second is a very different beast – one that’s almost certainly guaranteed to be a love/hate affair.
Tag Archives: alternative
HOT MOTH – Small Fires EP
Brighton’s Hot Moth create a sound that’s a bit like experiencing an aural collision between the crunchy but song-driven aspects of the much missed Oceansize and the cerebral, clankier elements of cult heroes The Fierce And The Dead. The three songs on their 2016 EP ‘Small Fires’ aim for the gut as much as the head and combined create a fine, if far too short, voyage into arty mathrock territory.
FUTURE TALK – The Path That Sadness Paved EP
2015 saw a lot of alt-rock bands with a slight emo slant breaking through, particularly in the UK. Few are as impressive as Gloucestershire-based quintet Future Talk, a band whom seem to recognise that huge melodies are equally as important as musical prowess. The band’s appeal is also very much helped by the fact that the four songs on their ‘The Road That Sadness Paved’ EP have less of the sheen and fewer vocal filters than is often associated with acts of a similar style.
BIGG – Lock Up Your Daughters EP
Risen from the ashes of Beat Magnets – a band who played at festivals and scored support slots with The Wombats – comes Bigg, a loud, guitar driven creation from Reading. Aside from influence from various UK indie bands, their debut EP brings a surprising amount of crunch and sometimes a heaviness that might just find them wandering into the worlds of other listeners previously not reached by Beat Magnets. Their music, although often accessible, sometimes has the same kind of hard and sulking attitude that’s present in their publicity photos for the release, where at least one member has decided on a facial expression that suggests someone has popped his favourite balloon.
SONS OF PROVIDENCE – A Conscious End To Suffering
Looking at the minimalist artwork and bleak choice of title, you’d be forgiven for thinking this 2015 release from Arizona’s Sons of Provedence would be a doom metal affair, but straight up doom metal it very much is not. For this release, the three piece band twist in all manner of directions, from chunky metal, electronica and goth sounds, through stuff that sounds almost Nick Cave esque… While the music can change wildly from track to track – and often within those tracks – the overarching theme of the album is exceptionally dark.