Labels: Pet Piranha
Review by: Mike Whelan
Mercury Tilt Switch harness a sort of early-Idlewild meets “¦Trail of the Dead sound. I hate to use the term post-hardcore (because loads of bands seem to label themselves as such nowadays, just to sell more records), but for MTS it does seem pretty close to the mark.
“Brundle Kid’ is thirty-three minutes of tight, occasionally noisy, guitar-driven songs. It does sound fairly similar to the sound a few other British bands are trying to create at the moment, notably Kids Near Water – who aren’t meeting with much success, and Hundred Reasons – who are. However, there are obvious influences from other bands in “Brundle Kid,’ which help to set the album apart from these other bands. Braid, for example, most obvious in “Tall Trees’ (they do that thing that Braid always did, where two people shout in the chorus), as well as bits of “¦Trail of the Dead and if you listen really closely, and use your imagination, a smidgen of At the Drive-In.
MTS showcase a versatile range of songs on this album. Tracks vary from the fast-paced, less-melodic efforts like “Radar Response,’ to acoustic, almost folky tracks like “Edge of the Swimming Pool.’ There are even a couple of tracks that fall in between, like my own personal favourites, “Half Time Shankly’ and “There is no Such Thing as a Freak Wave.’ A song which manages to sound so much like Idlewild that it’s scary, especially in the chorus, “This is a VOICE! Take the future”.
This is a strong full-length which bodes well for future releases. “Brundle Kid’ won’t just appeal to fans of bands on Dischord, as their sound is well-rounded enough to ensure a wide appeal. On this evidence Mercury Tilt Switch could well become a band to keep an eye out for.