Labels: Bombed Out Records
Review by: MH
I picked this one up out of the review pile as the chances are that if Bombed Out puts two of their bands together on a split it’s going to be pretty good and I’m familiar enough with both bands to think that might have been pretty likely here. I saw Slow Science play at Old El Paso in London a few years ago, and then again at The Black Heart in Camden sometime after and enjoyed them live both times without being familiar with their demo at the time. I think they’ve been and gone in the past with band members being out of the country so there are only a few of their songs around. Anyway, they play indie rock/punk and these two songs are utterly brilliant. The interplay between the male and female vocals is super and the two tracks are overflowing with an energy that absolutely captures their live sound. Superchunk would be a fairly obvious point of reference but Slow Science certainly have their own sound. The second track, “False Start” is nothing short of fantastic with the vocals riding the crest of a wave throughout and the guitar lines superb. A hard act to follow to say the least. The Dauntless Elite are on the other side of the white vinyl and, predictably, their songs are great too. They’ve been around for ages now and I hold them up amongst the top handful of UK punk rock bands. The titles are recognisably in that Dauntless Elite-style – the opener is called “Blitzar Radio (Yes I Can Hear You, Clem Fandango)”. It’s mid-paced with a more raucous chorus. “We Are Baamzorft” is even better. I guess I was right – a split like this was never going to fail. The worst thing, though, is that both of these bands have recently split up. This split is a mighty fine way to go though.