Labels: Bearos
Review by: Andy Malcolm
These guys are great. Yet I know barely the first thing about them. Epic 45 are a wonderful UK instrumental band, and this is their second 7″ on the fantastic little label known as Bearos. It’s even on white vinyl. Woo hoo!
Anyway, there are 3 songs, and I’ve just realised I keep playing side B first. Not to worry. Two songs on side A, pitching in at around the 4 minute mark each time. “Stuart Banks” is fairly typical guitar based instrumental stuff that has to be done really well to enthuse me. Repetetively strummed guitars with light twinkles hiding in the background, and then it suddenly gets all noisy and agressive like these instrumental bands do sometimes. I guess they get bored of pansy-ing around being all nice sounding, so they have to do that post-hardcore riffage. Pah. I prefer the pretty stuff. Which is good, because the other two songs here are decidedly in that direction. “We Finished Our Drinks And Left” is the shorter of the two, going with lots of bloopy electronic fx over the buzzing hum that fades back and forth. Drums are introduced and things are gently nudged a long. Kinda special, sounds like Tristeza.
Best is saved for “Para Pintores De Escenario”, which is 7 minutes long. I just heard the majority of the people reading slide their chairs back, stand up, and make for the exits. Anyway, those of you with enough appreciation of the self-indulgent instrumental to remain seated will find this track easily meets with your approval. Things are introduced with a the drone and pulsing noise of what you could perhaps imagine as an enormous, abandoned space-ship drifting through space, its lights periodically flashing on and off. Eventually the music slides in beneath the noise, making use of haunting piano and other instruments. The track then winds it’s way on to its conclusion on its zero gravity electronic post rock path a couple of galaxies away from where it started.
The kind of music you’d sit and look out of the window too, the pictures on the front of the record depict shots from a train. I think that fits perfectly. Easily one of the best UK bands that you won’t often hear about.