Silence Kid
11-08-2004, 07:58 AM
I found this review and thought it might be of interest to some. It's taken from manchestermusic.co.uk, which gets over 1,000,000 hits a month and focuses mainly on young unsigned bands around manchester uk and new up and coming and/or underground acts worldwide. They also run a cool independent label called soviet union records (sovietunion.co.uk) which is home to some great new bands and well worth a look.
:: Prosaics ::
15 November 2004 / Matador Records / 5 Trk CD
By Manuel Ecostos
Technically this came in just in the nick of time for last weeks review deadline. But on the first spin, I stole the CD for one week of evil , wicked personal pleasure. Because Prosaics may just be another transatlantic onslaught of retro fuelled gothic rock. But oh, how good it is. This is the darkest, heaviest record I’ve heard for a while. The tenor melodies of bands like The Stills are set against the subtle simple guitar notes of the early Cure (Primary / 17 Seconds) and the bulk of the early 1980’s underground, independent label stock (4AD, Situation 2, Fiction).
But this record is so much better than any normal references would infer. Prosaics mine into the heavy, rocked out, bleak souled semi-pop of classic bands like Modern English (early 4AD forerunners) and relish the lo-fi grinds of original, but at the time, embryonic acts like The Southern Death Cult. But it sounds nothing like any of these bands in particular, At times the vocals even track a melodic Morrissey, but it’s a sum that’s so massively greater than it’s parts.
The haunting bursts of TEETH are just part of a general, inspiring, jagged, uptempo onslaught. FAILURE is all action and swirling guitars, chiming in, switching out, slicing up two notes and fuzzing itself up with enough bite to let you still hear the string synth in the bacground. NOW THE SHADOW OF THE COLUMN is all this and more. Flat, but ridiculously heavy bass sounds, sit underneath a very fulfilling mesh of guitars with surprisingly few overdubs. CRAWLING makes Interpol sound like McFly – It’s dark, dangerous and full of the perfect references, shouting from the gallows, with the menace of cult bands like UK Decay. TENANTS though is maybe the best. It’s swaggering chords and slightly wild vocals perfectly distilling the essence of serious men in long overcoats looking violently disaffected in a 1980 inner city rehearsal room.
My favourite record. I hate music. I love this. Music for grown ups.
MMMMM
Resources:
Prosaics Web
Matador Records
:: Prosaics ::
15 November 2004 / Matador Records / 5 Trk CD
By Manuel Ecostos
Technically this came in just in the nick of time for last weeks review deadline. But on the first spin, I stole the CD for one week of evil , wicked personal pleasure. Because Prosaics may just be another transatlantic onslaught of retro fuelled gothic rock. But oh, how good it is. This is the darkest, heaviest record I’ve heard for a while. The tenor melodies of bands like The Stills are set against the subtle simple guitar notes of the early Cure (Primary / 17 Seconds) and the bulk of the early 1980’s underground, independent label stock (4AD, Situation 2, Fiction).
But this record is so much better than any normal references would infer. Prosaics mine into the heavy, rocked out, bleak souled semi-pop of classic bands like Modern English (early 4AD forerunners) and relish the lo-fi grinds of original, but at the time, embryonic acts like The Southern Death Cult. But it sounds nothing like any of these bands in particular, At times the vocals even track a melodic Morrissey, but it’s a sum that’s so massively greater than it’s parts.
The haunting bursts of TEETH are just part of a general, inspiring, jagged, uptempo onslaught. FAILURE is all action and swirling guitars, chiming in, switching out, slicing up two notes and fuzzing itself up with enough bite to let you still hear the string synth in the bacground. NOW THE SHADOW OF THE COLUMN is all this and more. Flat, but ridiculously heavy bass sounds, sit underneath a very fulfilling mesh of guitars with surprisingly few overdubs. CRAWLING makes Interpol sound like McFly – It’s dark, dangerous and full of the perfect references, shouting from the gallows, with the menace of cult bands like UK Decay. TENANTS though is maybe the best. It’s swaggering chords and slightly wild vocals perfectly distilling the essence of serious men in long overcoats looking violently disaffected in a 1980 inner city rehearsal room.
My favourite record. I hate music. I love this. Music for grown ups.
MMMMM
Resources:
Prosaics Web
Matador Records