Artist Vs Poet - Damn rough night (EP)

"I guess I had a damn rough night / I'm still piecing it together / There's a girl in my bed / And I haven't even met her / Sorry for what I'm about to do / Turning 21 is a bitch to go through."

2/5

Recommanded if you like:
Forever The Sickest Kids, Sing It Loud, The Summer Set
Check also:
A Bird A Sparrow, School Boy Humor, Racing Kites

www.myspace.com/artistvspoet
(Fearless Records, 2009)

Random: Man Overboard interview

I just did an interview with Justin of Man Overboard. If my review of their latest EP wasn't convincing enough, let me recommend you again to check this band out. My review of their upcoming split with Transit is coming. They're also very nice dudes, as you will be able to testify in the interview.

Click the "Read more" link below to read it.

Small Brown Bike - Composite volume one (7'')

Loads of punk this week, mmh? Let me tell you that with this one, it's for the best, my friends. If you're not familiar with Small Brown Bike, they're a four-piece band from Michigan that existed between 1996 and 2004 and produced a mix of punk-rock, emo and post-hardcore. While remaining quite underground, they would sell out thousand capacity venues and get critical praise. As a result, their sound became hugely influential for later bands to come. After they broke up in 2004, they played a few reunion shows in 2007 to benefit a dear friend battling leukemia. Oh yes, I forgot to mention they were great guys too. A few weeks ago, they announced they were getting back together with the original line-up to play dates and above all record new material. Punknews.org messageboards' server exploded, the Fest 8 took a sudden sacred side and orgcore punkers promised to shave and change their squared shirts.

Not really, but it did receive an unsurprisingly great reaction. The first piece of new material is this 7'', 'Composite volume one'. As you can guess, there will be a series of several vinyls. So, how are those two new songs, the first the band wrote in six years? As soon as the needle of their turntable will touch the record, fans will be pleased to hear the energy featured on 'When we run'. The songwriting is vivacious, the dueling guitars are doing their job to perfection, providing both dynamism and emotional melancholy. It sounds more like material from 'Our own wars' than the mellower 'The river bed'. The very melodic 'Hourglass' is another pretty song, well-composed and featuring a superb ending. Brothers Mike and Ben Reed's dual vocals still hit hard as one of the band's major assets. The lyrics are very inspired too.

You never know what to expect from new songs recorded after that many years of hiatus but Small Brown Bike should reassure a lot of fans with 'Composite volume one'. If those two songs are any indication of what's to come (that is to say first another 7'' at spring time), the Michigan act is able to reach everyone's expectations again. The Bike browns again!

4/5

Nb.: You can listen to the 7'' here.

Recommanded if you like:
Hot Water Music, Avail, Braid
Check also:
Able Baker Fox, Bridge And Tunnel, Young Livers

www.myspace.com/smllbrwnbk
(No Idea Records, 2009)

Random: Alter The Press!

Hey,
I just wanted to tell you that from now on I'm also writing live reviews for the UK website Alter The Press! that provides news, interviews, reviews, contests and more about the alternative rock scene. My friend Sean created it last year and to my surprise it got really big, actually competing with Punktastic and even getting exclusives before AbsolutePunk. I suggest you to bookmark it, you won't regret it!
My first live reviews can be found here and here. Thanks for your reading!

Romain.

MxPx - Left coast punk EP

Two years after their return to Tooth & Nail with their eighth full-length 'Secret weapon', MxPx bring some new material (that isn't covers) to their fans with 'Left coast punk EP'.

Some old fans who lost faith in the Bremerton trio because of the softer turn taken several years ago may be satisfied with the punk-rock orientation of this new EP. It shows us a side of the band we hadn't seen for quite some time. 'One step further' lays the cards on the table: the bass and the guitar provide such an immediate fast pace to the song that it honestly surprised me a bit. It reminded me of 'Time will tell' from the 'Renaissance EP' they released in 2001. For quite some time, I told you. They don't slow down with 'Desperate to understand', which intro riff is very, very reminiscent of the one opening Propagandhi's 'Speculative fiction'... Rip-off or coincidence, anyway MxPx haven't rocked that hard in a while. Mike Herrera tickles his bass like he's covering NOFX songs and drummer Yuri Ruley plays faster and harder than he has in the last ten years or so. Herrera even trades vocals with guitarist Tom Wisniewski ('Shangaie in Shangai'), which I feel last happened forever ago. It's classic MxPx skate-punk, which also implies very short verses leading to repetitive choruses. It's what generally pushes me away with their songs, and it's especially true on 'Broken', which is actually slower and darker, in the style of 2005's 'Panic'. The pop-punk frontier is finally crossed on 'Hopeless case', a song about God being the only hope when everything falls apart, and 'End', which starts acoustically. They unfortunately close the record on a more boring and less convincing way. The EP contains four other songs on physical copy, which are three instrumentals and one unreleased demo.

'Left coast punk EP' could be seen as a return to basics for MxPx fans. The sound is rawer, faster and reminiscent of their older material. It is more dynamic than their latest productions, even though half of the songs are still catchy pop-punk. I'm not totally convinced by the melodies but this EP may be a sign of good things to come.

3.5/5

Recommanded if you like:
NOFX, No Use For A Name, Fenix TX
Check also:
Tumbledown, The Cootees, Dogwood

www.myspace.com/mxpx
(Rock City Recording Company, 2009)

Buy on Amazon FR
Buy on Amazon UK
Buy on Amazon US

Another Fate - Chapter one (EP)

You can't hold back the Dirty South! Once again, I got asked to write about a band from Toulouse, France. Another Fate is a punk-rock three-piece from the "Ville Rose" ("Pink City"). 'Chapter one' is their first EP and contains five songs directly influenced by the softcore of the late 1990's and before.

The instrumental intro 'Dawn' is a very good foretaste, bringing us back to the older The Ataris records with its melodic yet sober riffs and pounding drums. All the songs have this kind of old-school feeling, which would make you think Another Fate are from the glorious Vagrant days era. Guitarist/singer Michael's voice makes me think a lot of Tony Cape (No Use For A Name) on certain moments. You know, this nasal and distant voice a lot of punk-rock singers have and that fits the genre perfectly. The tone is so much the same that 'Old friend' sounds like a No Use b-side. The choruses are melodic but not overly catchy and the compositions are all tight and temperate. But don't think they can't truely rock, the end of 'Fight for tomorrow' will prove you wrong, as the instruments race in a surprising and careful way, heavy riffs accompanying short and simple gang vocals. 'Shelter' is the fastest track on the EP, it could be orgcore and take them to the Fest if the vocals were more husky. The EP closer is an acoustic ballad featuring sweet notes but the singing is below the other songs, making it forgettable.

This kind of punk-rock, neat and soft, is a bit snubbed by French bands who seem to be attracted by simpler and more immediate compositions. It may be because Another Fate are older than most of them, which in this condition works in their favour. Thus, the three Toulousans can be proud to be one of the only ones to still carry this nostalgic sound.

3.5/5

Recommanded if you like:
No Use For A Name, Descendents, All
Check also:
Hamilton, North Lincoln, Your Own Fate

www.myspace.com/faterocks
(Self-released, 2009)

Me Vs Hero - This one's for our friend (Reissue EP)

Me Vs Hero, young band from Blackpool, England are reissuing their 2007 debut EP (which was untitled at first) after a new recording of all the songs and the addition of an acoustic track. The record is said to be released as a tribute to their former guitarist Alex McCulloch who died in August 2008.

From the very first lines of this EP, you know what to expect: "Let's go / Turn up your stereo / Blow these speakers out / Move your feet / Tear these walls down"... Me Vs Hero are the British version of those sclads of pop-punk bands trying to be the next Four Year Strong by incorporating a few hardcore elements to their sound. Just like a lot of their American peers, they've listened to the latter band way too much, the result being that they sound more like an uninspired and pale copy. The lyrics are terribly weak and pointless, mostly related to being in a band and creating beatdowns (the UK equivalent of "breakdowns"). The vocals aren't bad but the whole lot of gang vocals and screams are way too cliche to be enjoyable. You won't be surprised to find guttural "Oh!" to introduce the breakdowns and a fair share of double bass. Speaking of breakdowns, they aren't much better. The band has such an obvious obsession with making the kids mosh that it sounds forced. They're either empty ('Hey Elzar, take it up another notch with the spice weasel. BAM!') or disorganized ('Upbeat (Down'). Yeah, even the titles are ridiculous rip-offs from Four Year Strong.

The whole EP isn't unpleasing and those new versions of the songs make them more energetic, but nothing on it is memorable. Me Vs Hero are just trying too hard. They have potential, so they should try to make a more personal and honest music.

3/5

Recommanded if you like:
Four Year Strong, A Loss For Words, The Wonder Years
Check also:
Take Notice, Fight Fair, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk!

www.myspace.com/mevshero
(Self-released, 2009)

NOFX - Cokie the clown (EP)

Whether you hate them or love them, there's something you have to agree with: NOFX never cease entertaining their fans. Even if a lot of people accuse them to constantly rip-off 2000's great 'Pump up the valuum' on every new album ever since its release, I personally think they've had different periods, good and less good, and the one they're in right now kind of show a more personal facet. The 'Backstage passport' Fuse TV episodes and DVD enabled fans to see what was going on in NOFX's world behind the curtain of their humorous and political punk-rock and 'Coaster', released earlier this year, was also a bit more intimate than their previous works. This new EP goes a step further.

The title-track is a fictional first-person-written song about a drug-addicted clown ("That is real blood / Dripping from his fake red nose"). I love guitarist Eric Melvin's vocals and his contribution here is excellent; the fast riffs, bitter tone and catchy lines (despite a lack of chorus) making it an immediate NOFX hit. 'Codependence day' is also about addiction (hey, it's NOFX, don't act surprised) but actually deals with both merits and dangers of alcohol. 'Fermented and flailing', despite its title, is more political. As always, Michael Burkett alias Fat Mike's lyrics are cynically yet truthfully depicting America's state without playing the alarmist and depressive card: "And it's a long, long way down / The parachutes are gone so grab a smoke / And it's a long, long free fall / No signs of soft landing, bon, bon voyage". Both tracks are fast whereas 'Straight outta Massachussets' is softer and more upbeat, being a full-band version of a song Fat Mike performed acoustically for a Pancake Mountain session. None of those tracks are amazing, and it's rather the acoustic take on 'My orphan year', a track from 'Coaster', that is worth our attention. Probably the most personal song Mike ever wrote, it relates the loss of both his parents in 2006 and his difficult relationship with his father. The 3-minute track is even more touching when he performs it alone with a guitar, stripping it and slowing it down. He says it himself: "For once, I'm sincere / 2006, that was my orphan year". It's nothing cheesy, the 42-year old singer didn't try to make a heartrending ballad with beautiful lyrics, he's singing as out of tune as usual and keeping his traditional outspokenness but rarely has he been able to move his fans like that.

'Cockie the clown' doesn't beat its full-length companion 'Coaster' like 'Never trust a hippy' did to 'Wolves in wolves' clothing'. Those four tracks, recorded during the last album sessions, are quite average in their shape, featuring NOFX's trademark acerbic punk-rock but at the same time serves us a band opening up a little more to their fans. If that's a new perspective for NOFX, it will definitely be refreshing and appreciated.

3.5/5

Recommanded if you like:
Rancid, Lagwagon, Teenage Bottlerocket
Check also:
Uncommonmenfrommars, Frenzal Rhomb, Rehasher

www.myspace.com/nofx
(Fat Wreck Chords, 2009)

Buy on Amazon FR
Buy on Amazon UK
Buy on Amazon US

A Bridge To Many - Weights (7'')

Not many French hardcore bands have ever really attracted my attention. And to be honest, A Bridge To Many's first demo didn't either. Bad production, annoying vocals and a not-so-good English, I quickly gave up on it. Well, their new EP 'Weights' is just an impressive progression from where they were before.

First, there's the cover. Having your artwork designed by Cristy C. Road, that's some way to start off things! The girl worked for Green Day, no less. It's the kind of cover that makes you wonder why compact discs exist. Then there's the sound. I promise to forget everything I thought about this band. The five guys from Toulouse have simply changed everything that was bad on their demo: the drummer (Bastien, who also plays guitar for much less interesting act Through My Eyes) took an electric charge, the vocals are much less put forward in the mix, the riffs reach a whole new level, from now on more massive than catchy. Even the terrible accent seems to have vanished. Their modern hardcore has embraced a totally new intensity, to become clean and powerful. The impeccable production has a lot to do with it. Nico's imposing bass throws classic but great stop-and-go's ('Intro/Weights'), guitar riffs are heavy as fuck ('Screen me out') and Wilo's vocals are rough enough to give dynamism and not too much so you can sing along. However, the lyrics are less explicitely committed and strive more for a classical and vague hardcore songwriting running on "I" and "life" ('Salvation is not coming' yet blatantly tackles religion, but it's a song already featured on the demo). But what I particularly enjoy and am happily surprised about is that, despite their obvious influences, it doesn't sound like they force too hard, and nothing appears overdone. The gang vocals are subtle enough not to be cliche and the breakdowns aren't patently predictable but still pretty solid: the end of 'Screen me out' wooh, slap in the face! Impressive work from Nab and Kevin.

Naturally, A Bridge To Many aren't bringing anything new to the table, but damn, they're French and it's relieving to finally witness a young band from our country delivering a solid, relevant hardcore with such a flawless production. Very good job, guys.

4/5

Recommanded if you like:
Go It Alone, Champion, Miles Away
Check also:
Lasting Traces, Nine Eleven, Every Second Week

www.myspace.com/abridgetomany
(Distorted Charly Brown Records/Eternalis Records, 2009)

Immanu El - Moen

Immanu El is a young Swedish five-piece producing an indie/post-rock with a sweet Nordic vibe. After a demo and a first album 'They'll come, they come' that enthusiasted critics, they're releasing their sophomore album 'Moen'.

Claes Strängberg's voice is still as sweet as a lullaby. So logically it isn't a bad thing that there's much more vocals on this album. In fact, the band moved away from their atmospherical post-rock sound to embrace indie-rock. They're not Death Cab For Cutie yet, but there's a strong pop influence on this record ('Lionheart') and less captivating soundscapes. 'Archers' would not have been far from Anchor & Braille or Copeland's last effort if it wasn't for the airy guitars. 'Moen' feels more personal and detached from their obvious previous influences (Explosions In The Sky, Sigur Rós), they've speeded up the pace, experimented more dynamics and harmonies (the violins on 'Storm') and if their sound may have matured, it is not really what I was expecting from them. However, it may be indie, but it's upscale indie: the the percussions give depth to the songs, the songwriting is great, so is the production and some parts are pure bliss ('May' and its imposing drums) but in the end, there aren't jaw-dropping moments and it moves me less than 'They'll come, they come'. I hope this rock turn won't make them end up on a 'Grey's anatomy' soundtrack, but maybe that's what they want. Still, 'Moen' is a good album from a great band.

3.5/5

Recommanded if you like:
The Appleseed Cast, Ef, Copeland
Check also:
Kyte, Blueneck, Codes In The Clouds

www.myspace.com/immanuelband
(And The Sound Records, 2009)

Buy on Amazon FR
Buy on Amazon UK
Buy on Amazon US