if you recall, I mentioned that Fight Fair features some members of Seeing Means More. this is Seeing Means More. they started out in 2002 as a traditional screamo band influenced by Indian Summer and Funeral Diner. they broke up shortly thereafter, and then reformed in 2003 with a new sound, far more aggressive. due to a growing interest in other forms of hardcore music, Seeing Means More ended up incorporating a heavier sound, screamo fused with hardcore and metalcore – a sound that later became to some extent synonymous with popular ’00s screamo. along with Takaru, Seeing Means More represented something more immediate than City of Caterpillar’s exploring crescendos, and something heavier and more metallic than Orchid. but at the same time the epic build ups of “Bernadetti Protti”, that eventually come crashing down into a devastating metalcore finisher suggests that evidences of both City of Caterpillar’s and Orchid’s influence can be found throughout this discography. their love for intricate melodic hooks and spoken vocals can be attributed to the Indian Summer influence. the end result is somewhere between the spastic, melodic and wonderfully artistic sound of bands such as The Spirit of Versailles and In Loving Memory – and the more direct and intense sound of bands like Loma Prieta and Comadre. all with sprinkles of Indian Summer, pioneers of the perhaps definite emo sound. check out this solid thirty minute discography. you won’t regret it! particularly not after listening to the depressing sagas that are the two last tracks, ending this discography as not only proof of what Seeing Means More were, but also hints for what Seeing Means More could have been.
archive for June, 2010
Fight Fair – California Kicks
Tuesday, June 29th, 2010today is a day to remember forever. today is the release date of Fight Fair’s full full-length album, California Kicks. and what a kick it is! with Settle the Score, Fight Fair almost completely ditched their pop skram sound in favour of a pop hardcore sound, but left room for other experiments. one of those experiments was the surf-pop monster hit “Pop Rocks”. the band decided that this was the song that was the most fun to play, and decided that this was what they wanted to do on their full-length. Ramones mixed with The Beach Boys is the way the band describes their surfcore sound, and that description isn’t all that far off. but like with Settle the Score, the band allows themselves to experiment a lot on the record. they try the lot. punk rock-tinged power pop like Undertones and The Jam, dancefloor hip-pop that’s somewhere between The Ting Tings and Black Eyed Peas, and pure ’90s melodic punk rock and alternative between Lifetime and The All-American Rejects’ early stuff. but the very core of their sound is the insanely catchy mind blowing surfcore sound, with lyrics about romance, being young, OOP vinyl, surfing and hanging at the beach. let me assure you, Fight Fair are very much successful in reintroducing what they call “the best of the beach”. namely, “the playfulness, the parties, the people and, most of all, the pop-laced singalongs”. Fight Fair are to surf rock what The Young Hasselhoffs are to doo-wop. California Kicks brings back a near forgotten era, and illuminates it like never before. Fight Fair are surfcore’s beacon, lighthouse and flagship. serving as an ode to Californian summers, and the careless playfulness of ’50s and ’60s surf rock. if you like newer Weezer albums, you’ll love Fight Fair. if you like surf rock, you’ll love Fight Fair. if you like fun, you’ll LOVE Fight Fair! get this! now! and get ready to P-P-P-PARTY!!! buy it from http://www.myspace.com/fightfair – along with some frisbees, beach balls and other must-have Fight Fair memorabilia. whether they are making fun or having fun isn’t remotely interesting. what is interesting is the 100% quality of this amazing album. GET IT! Fight Fair’s first EP was the epitome of pop skram. their second was the epitome of pop hardcore. this is the epitome of LIFE. Fight Fair for LIFE.
Fight Fair – Settle the Score
Monday, June 28th, 2010in the name of fun, here is some more Fight Fair! they are back to settle the score with their follow up, in which only two of the members featured on xFashionx appears. that may be one part of the explanation as to why they sounds like a completely different band on Settle the Score. the fact that they’ve changed so much might obviously lead to the loss of some fans, as well as the gaining of some fans. what this essentially means is that if you disliked the first record, you might still love this – giving you *no* excuse to not download this. even if you absolutely hated their first record, you still need to download this. no excuses. anyway, despite all the differences (which I’ll get back to), there are a few similarities that I might as well get out of the way at once. they are still catchy, poppy and totally awesome. the track “San Diego” appears in a re-recorded format. there are still ’90s punk rock influences galore. and that’s about it. now for the differences – this release marks an obvious change of sound. one could say that they go from the epitome of pop skram to the epitome of pop hardcore. bands like Set Your Goals and Four Year Strong might be mentioned, but Fight Fair are far superior. with lyrics «we just wanna have some fun/we’re still young and on the run/we just gotta have some fun/everyone», they are definitely not clouding their message with pseudo-poetic mumbo jumbo, but instead favouring the direct approach. with vocals that have been through many a vocoder/pitch altering software, punk rock guitars that play the most perfect melodies, and heavy as shit drums – Fight Fair are a loud, intense and fun affair. varying between the fast breakdown-heavy pop hardcore sound, a more “ordinary” ’90s punk rock sound, a skramzy sound, and the ultra-catchy and refined surf pop sound. «don’t bother with the other boys/I’m better than them», pleads vocalist Alex Bigman in the heartfelt emotional distress masterpiece “Pop Rocks”. now I’m pleading you, don’t bother with the other bands, this one’s better than them. get this at once! Fight Fair for the win!
Matt Evans – Demo 2010
Monday, June 14th, 2010this is the solo effort by Matt Evans, who plays in the very recently posted Just Die!. this does however sound very little like Just Die!’s raging style of hardcore. it takes a far mellower road, with an acoustic guitar and a comfortable voice. Matt Evan’s take us on a gentle ride, through three songs that nearly reach the seventh minute mark. this is emotional folky and poppy acoustic rock that carves its way into your brain. perhaps especially with the last track, and all of its catchy The Get Up Kids (Four Minute Mile era) riffs. Matt Evans displays an affinity for melodic chord progressions and pleasant vocal harmonies. it’s good. download it!
Just Die! – Garages and Basements
Sunday, June 13th, 2010can’t get enough of Just Die!, eh? understandable, as their first record was a) really awesome and b) really short. this next one is no deviant from that formula. and if there’s a parallel between awesomeness and shortness, that would mean this one is even more awesome! (that’s my goofy way of informing you that this one is shorter.) it’s an almost nine minutes long seven inch record entitled Garages and Basements, and you can buy it from http://deadendrecs.bigcartel.com/product/just-die-garages-and-basements – it’s only $5, so you probably should. if you are wondering what to expect – expect much of the same. Lifetime, Kid Dynamite and Strike Anywhere are bands I can somewhat compare this to. it’s a bit ’90s skate/punk rock, a bit ’00s hardcore, a bit of this, a bit of that – and a lot of awesome. the skate/punk influence results in a slightly more mid-tempo sound, consequently preventing the songs from blazing by too fast for you to actually digest them. with this record, Just Die! further evolves their catchy flavour of anthem hardcore. it even has gang vox!!! I fucking love gang vocals. download this. buy this. get on board.
Just Die! – No Time for Poetry
Sunday, June 13th, 2010Just Die! are a NC hardcore band that’s been going on for quite some time now. this is their first full length, entitled No Time for Poetry. released in 2007, this is a eighteen minute crash course in intensity. with their tracks rarely reaching the 1:30 mark, this band doesn’t fuck around. they get straight to the point, then proceed to hammer it into your skull. still, they do no neglect to melody nor atmosphere. interchanging between fast-as-hell hardcore (at almost grindcore speeds) and anthem punk, this band leaves a mark with all their passionate shouting, energetic drumming and awesome riffs. this band is hyped as fuck all over the Internet, and with good reason. aggressive enough for the hardcore purist and catchy enough for the hardcore newbie, they satisfy everyone on all accounts. but remember to put it on repeat, because this shit flies by fast. it might need a couple of listens to stick. in any event, check this band out! you will not regret it.
Mega Games – Let in These Hands to Hold
Thursday, June 10th, 2010if you remember The Mega Games Two, you remember them fondly. I put up their début here ages ago. now – they are back! but the two have become the three, so gone is the name. instead of going “The Mega Games Three” or “The Mega Games Two Plus One”, they’ve settled on Mega Games. possibly to prevent future name crises? either way, they are back. now with drums! the reborn Mega Games’ début is ten minutes long, and consists of four truly great folk punk tracks. not as furious as some of the other folk punk up on this blog, but just as passionate. carefully composed messes of crashing cymbals, uplifting melodica, galloping guitar and soaring vocals. check out this awesome Southampton three-piece! you won’t be disappointed.
Eagulls – Songs of Prey
Tuesday, June 1st, 2010one of the key ingredients for good music is in my opinion feedback from guitars. and plenty of it. based on the simple scientifically proven parallel between awesomeness and guitar feedback, we can safely state that Eagulls are a really awesome band. sounding like a mix between The Cortlandt Homes, Dinosaur Jr. and American Steel, Eagulls and their fifteen minute début is a very pleasant distinctly English affair. fuzzy and catchy guitars, soft and melodic bass, clever and tight drumming and quite great punk rock vocals. what’s not to like? you need to hear this band. you can visit their MySpace http://www.myspace.com/eagulls to get cassettes and more info etc.
The Ergs! – songs from The Measure [sa] splits
Tuesday, June 1st, 2010The Ergs! did two splits with The Measure [sa], that they put out on the wonderful No Idea records. they are new-ish recordings, and so they sound like newer The Ergs!, rather than the Dorkrockcorkrod years. while The Ergs! might not be the darkest, angriest or saddest punk rock band, they write clever and sincere tunes that deserve to be heard. while their lyrics often are described as wilfully geeky and a bit silly, they are definitely moving and touching. you can download them here, and you can buy them both from http://www.dorkrockcorkrod.com/ – which you should. if you can! and you should also check out The Measure, a melodic and catchy punk rock band that features Mikey from The Ergs! on drums, and sort of sounds like the ’90s emo band Samuel in a more traditional punk rock setting. one of The Ergs! tracks are a cover of The Measure [sa] (“Workage”).