Song reviews

Instrumental gloom band Thieves of Eden hit the wall with rather more conviction this time round “Number 3”. Whilst still a bit lacking in the virtuosity department, the band strut their stuff with a much greater sense of purpose and consequently this song may even find favour with hard rock fans.

You wouldn’t need to hear more than the first four bars of “Apathy” to work out that Anyone’s Guess were an American band. Hard rocking guitars and emotive female vocals make the requisite sonic marks and yet I remain unconvinced. Why? The band sound like they were made in a factory somewhere in the great state of mediocrity.

There no point in denying it. Barring the Martin Metcalfe style indie guitar that creeps to the front of the mix occasionally, “Neutrals” is a somewhat anodyne song that simply fails to capture your attention. I doubt it will be the song to break The Tranq.

When you are an instrumental gloom band from Washington, as Thieves of Eden are, then it is unlikely that you will be springing any surprises. Their song “Number 8” therefore runs around a block a few too many times before ending up right back where it started. Spice it up a bit next time, guys!

I waited and I waited but the song never started. That means, in simple terms, that “Avenge” by Samilla Roberts is nothing more than an exercise in looping with nowhere to go. It would have been so much better if someone had remembered where they had left their song. At least I hope so.

It’s not hard to hear the influence of the past in “Wanderer” by American psychedelic rock band Captain Nowhere. This instrumental settles into a mellow groove nicely however and it was pleasing to hear some actual musical ability at work in the honourable cause of capturing your attention.

Just about tripping over its own fragility, “Loathe Me” is the kind of song that nonetheless runs its course without actually making you hit the off button. Nothing much really happens but you do get ambient style mood music and some lost in the hills vocals. After all, when you aim low that’s all you need.

Silence are apparently a Dutch student band and “Welcome To The Freakshow” does indeed supply ample evidence that staying in school brings benefits. The quirky and theatrical edge to the female vocals makes a welcome change from usual deadly sensitivity and the piano led song, whilst unpolished, stands up well too.

“Quinzhee” is a nice example of cardigan wearing indie pop with just enough quirkiness and left of field lyrics to class this song as endearing. I don’t think I could face an album’s worth of music like this without resorting to violent retribution but there are many out there who could.

Looped to the point of anonymity, The Luka State take no less than a full minute to demonstrate that they don’t have much more than a title for their song “Matter Of Time”. All credit to these three young lads nonetheless for stretching their lack of creative inspiration out to twelve seconds off the four minute mark. They are young so they can only get better. Maybe.

Rather dull and lacking in inspiration, “Soul Aspiration” is unlikely to generate much interest by casual ears in London band Knocking Host. More educated ears will have heard this type of sequenced plastic song done to death a couple of decades ago.

Simultaneously fragile and serious, Swedish singer If You Say So steps right up to the edge of melancholy with her debut single “Paint Me”. This is another slice from the Scandinavian pop cake, of course, and therefore this song stays close to the retro norm but I have to admit that the lady’s voice is not without that wistful appeal.