Labels: Gringo
Review by: Andy Malcolm
Reynolds can be a troubled band. I first heard them by mistake. I bought their Gringo 7″ at a show, when drunk. I had no idea who was on the record, I just bought it, like you do. Reynolds hadn’t even played that show. I later saw them play a ramshackle but enjoyable set, supporting Unwound upstairs in a pub. Unwound later blew me away (one of the best bands I have ever seen), even though I didn’t know who the fuck they were at the time. I went to see Reynolds and San Lorenzo. But hey. Reynolds sacked their drummer after that show. Since that occasion, I have seen Reynolds twice more. The first time, they were a support band for the very strange Gallon Drunk, who I have very little clue about. And the time after that, they played to 6 people in Norwich at about 1015pm. Their hearts weren’t in it, and try as I might, nor was mine. Awful. Since then, they have recorded this, parted ways with their singer, and apparently are headed in new directions.
This record opens up on “This Flat Land”, and if you’ve ever seen the countryside around the area where they were located, then you’d understand immediately where they got that name from. And it’s an excellent opening track. Moody build ups on the guitars, slowly dragging things a long, swaying side to side. Enter whispering vocals around the 2 1/2 minute mark, cue more sways. The vocals fade in and out and are barely noticed. Musically it’s like Aerial M with a Van Pelt influence. I guess. This song is almost 9 minutes long. Cripes.
And that sets the scene. Long, noodly, often-instrumental, but with this rather exciting post-hardcore streak that livens up their set and makes the album a lot more interesting than you might otherwise expect. “Humble Pie” pulsates when it explodes out of the quiet parts into full on shouty vocals, and hits into a groove rather emphatically too. “Reliviathan” showcases their calmer side, relying on brooding rhythms and occasional bursts of louder noise to create a contrast. And the intro to “Site Specific” totally reminds me of something of Sultans of Sentiment, though is not without some noisier moments where everything crashes back and forth forcefully.
Very sound debut album, what they get up to next is going to be very interesting indeed. Certainly upholds the Gringo tradition of being any good. Nice one chaps!