Labels: Scene Police
Review by: Ian Cavell
This gets this months award for most stunning record. Glorious artwork and great music. Nine songs, three by each band and not a clanger among them – sounds like a good deal to me. You may have had the fortune to pick this up at one of the recent shows that these three did. If not then make one almighty effort to get your grubby paws on a copy. Believe me when I say that these are three of the most exciting bands to have surfaced in these shores for quite some time.
First up : Rydell. Think Chamberlain, think heartfelt emo-rock, grating vocals and powerful songs. Think, fucking excellent! I can’t emphasize strongly enough how good these three songs are. I think a Rydell album is going to be a very great thing indeed.
And on to Sunfactor. Fracture showered adulation on this band when they reviewed their demo tape. I now see why. ‘Like The Angel You Are’ and ‘Fall In New England’ are two classic examples of how to do emo-rock well. The former bursts into life with sporadic bursts of guitar noise and is home to some great vocal work. The latter is nice and melodic. What more can you ask?
Which leaves the Babies Three to hurtle off in a new direction and astound me all over again. In a small, upstairs room above a pub in Leicester, the Babies Three played a mix of noisy emo/hardcore with an intensity that was second to none. The three songs here capture that ferocity remarkably well. Everyone should get a chance to hear the chilling emo-like guitar and the wonderful vocals of ‘Pepsi Lite’. Likewise, prepare to be astounded by the subsequent degeneration of the Babies Three into a screaming gem of a song called ‘untitled number one’. I don’t think my jaw can drop much lower.
I have a great deal of trouble deciding which band I like best of this CD. It changes pretty much every day – all three are just too incredible to choose one over the other. So yeah, this is pretty much an essential purchase.