Labels: Brave Noise
Review by: Andy Malcolm
Oh, it seems that another record I’ve picked up that has Twelve Hour Turn on. However did that happen? How annoying.
Firstly, must mention the glorious packaging, originally done, and with lyrics handwritten in blue on pieces of tracing paper. Ok…
I was listening to these songs on real audio last night, so it’s nice to hear them in their resplendent glory of vinyl reproduction. Engine Down start us off with some minimal, dark jangles, introduce a lovely thick bass sound, and a generally creating a pretty miserable mood, accentuated by the introduction of this distant, softly sung vocals. Everything is kind of bubbling under the surface, you can feel the tension and pressure building up as it surges towards the awaiting explosion of passionate energy when they break out the hardcore and start screaming the vocals. Then, like someone cut the cord, it all dissolves into some strange noises and the sound of someone playing piano – this is how I think the piano sounds: like you just jumped out the window of a 50th storey building, and you’re falling in slow motion. Oh my. Engine Down have an ex-member of Sleepytime Trio. Engine Down are a cross between I Hate Myself and some other band. Engine Down do emo like it isn’t the tired, vacant genre it’s becoming. Engine Down is the good.
Now, Twelve Hour turn hand over two more tracks – first up is “Wide Awake” which powers a long in that glorious emo groove they’ve perfected, guitars swooping and crashing all around amidst the screams that border on crying. At the end they switch and contrast between moody jangling and heavy hardcore at the click of a finger, where they also ‘borrow’ a Cap’n Jazz lyric – “i’m dying to tell you i’m dying”. We’ve also got “Flowers For The Dead” which moves a long similar lines, hitting an early rhythm before breaking down and meandering a long so that the song struggles at times to quite measure up to the earlier standards they set. It ends too quickly too, they just got the loud noise going again and it all suddenly finishes. And the vocals are mixed too low. Ah well, I found a couple of flaws with one of my favourite bands. Phew. Comparisons, well, it’s a more hardcore Spy versus Spy dueling it out with 400 Years.
Fine split. Twelve Hour Turn – album out now on No Idea. I can’t wait to get my hands on what will probably be one of the best emo records of the year.