The MRU Archives ::: T Reviews

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

 

The OBCD

 

Leave Us An End

Dublin's four piece Ska band punk out their latest EP release "Leave Us An End" six tracks of upbeat punk style songs with the DNA of some Ska influence, the OBCD opening track on the EP is called Square One, on this track The OBCD are blasting it away on some sassy brass and upbeat drums to shake your body to, this act sure can improvise, lead singer Eoghan O'Neill has a very unique voice and sounds great over this upbeat number, his vocal control and the way it floats just over the melody adds a different dimension to the genre Ska.

Track two Nu Song is full of punk adrenaline, but sways more on the commercial end of the genre, with some elements of pop to it Nu Song is lively enough with some great catchy hooks in the chorus. Mysterion is the third track, this is great catchy number, and the vocals are class, full of melody with Ska styled struts on the guitars.
The fourth track Siren has got a nice pulsating bass line, punk would be the easy way to describe this song but it does have strong elements of rock with distorted guitars and short sweet solos in it. Number five on the EP is called Barry Hurricane, first thing popped into my head after first listen was Arctic Monkeys, maybe it's the guitar riff, The OBCD do add some elements of Ska over the melody in the song.
Final track is called Always, vocals sound fantastic on this acoustic song, The OBCD mix it up a bit with hints of ragtime with the quirky whistling in the background and the rattling rhythms the sticks are making, even a twist of flamenco can be heard from in the melody, cracking song and superb vocals.
Review by Trevor Halpin

5/6

http://www.theobcd.com

They Walk Among Us

 

Outside The Campfire Circle

They Walk Among Us (TWAU) are a three piece rock band from Cardiff, Wales, Outside The Campfire Circle is produced by their lead singer Richard Proctor and has four tracks for your listening pleasure, track one "Beside" rocks all out with melodic guitar grooves and upbeat drumming from drummer Rob Young. "Let Love Shout" is track two, it has a sweet uplifting melody, Richards voice sounds great in this song, he adds some charisma and tone to this song, or should I say love song.

Third track "The Last Bastion", swaying drum beats with a steady groove can be heard in this tune, this song is my favourite from TWAU, it has a good catchy chorus and the vocals sound fantastic with some cool effects on them, alternative rock music at its best. Final track is called "Circling Wolves", hints of electro pop with an alternative side, this tune has a savage groove in it accompanied with some fantastic vocals, interesting stuff from this Cardiff rock band, the future is bright, the future is They Walk Among Us.

Review by Trevor Halpin

5/6

http://www.twaumusic.co.uk

The Honey Den

 

Out Beyond That Way

The Honey Den are a five piece band from London, UK and have composed a beautiful three track EP, lead singer Sonia's vocals on the Cd are full of soulful passion and have unique style, the first track "Rain" is a powerful song with some sweet jazz notes, the piano and catchy hooks on this track are a conspiracy working together with some uplifting vocals from Sonia, it makes this song sound a superb little number.

Track two "Learning From Myself", has country blues elements with a cool funky bass line, very commercial and would suit many mainstream radio programmes, fantastic vocals again from Sonia. Third and final song is called "Beyond That Way", is laced with blues and layered with a superb jazz styled vocal from lead singer Sonia, dynamics and grooves are emphasized with a classic rhythm section.

Review by Trevor Halpin

6/6

http://www.myspace.com/thehoneyden

The Hot Sprockets

 

Honey Skippin'

Dublin five piece blues rock outfit The Hot Sprockets release their debut album Honey Skippin' produced by organ and guitar player Boz Boorer, the album bleeds of blues on a rock edge, it kicks in with their song Crusin' upbeat with a superb vocal melody, this tune sets up the next song nicely called Midnight Train, the tone in this song has a soulful ring to it, but it rocks out in the drum department.

Sleep Shake will get you kicking your heels, country blues groove with a cool chorus to sing along to, dynamics in this song is perfect, I love the way the song shifts in dynamics, it almost allows you to take a breather after shaking your body to the song. Country Dirt and Bad Jim are very similar in style, country blues apart from the sneaky blue grass melody in Bad Jim.
Track six on the album is a piece called Chant; it's all done "a cappella", like a chant from an old gospel song, it's a great intro to the next song I'm Leaving, vocals sound excellent on this song, it's like a 70's kick back to a good old blues rock tune. Honeyskippin' has a good ballsy rock bass line with a catchy chorus that will have you repeating.
Help Me With Myself, the hooks in the bass line give this song it's character, catchy with the trademarks of Rory Gallagher. Out Grown, this tune is slightly different to the style that The Hot sprocket have showcased on this album, it's got a strong Latin groove tempered with some fantastic vocals.
Long Way From Home, a slow burning country folk tune in the vein of Neil Young in Castles Burning, lyrics are great they give a nice pictorial image of the story behind the song. Solid Gold, blues music with a taste of country rock, mid tempo song yet it crawls with a catchy drum beat, a bit like a rattle snake. Final tune on the album is Cold Winter, what a perfect way to end such a great album and with an acoustic number too, a blues/folk song with some catchy lyrics, the harmonies on the vocals blend together in perfect tone on this song, great tune and a fantastic album.

Review by Trevor Halpin

6/6

http://www.thehotsprockets.com

Tully

 

The Age of Sail

Alan Tully has been around the Dublin music scene since 2005, The Age of Sail is his debut EP containing five songs of pure folk music, as folk music goes it should be played with gentle guitar strokes and melodic vocals, Tully has nailed it on The Age Of Sail, each song on the EP has its own character but revolves around the whole Tully sound, the stand out song for me on this EP is Edge Of The World, Alan's voice takes full control of the mood in this tune, emotion and passion drives the superb lyrics, along with the rest of the songs on The Age of Sail this debut EP is something for Tully to be proud of.

Review by T.Halpin

5/6

http://www.alantullymusic.com

The Maquisards

 

Nine Songs

The Maquisards are a duo act that hail from Galway, Ireland. The EP "Nine Songs" contains some original material and a few covers of well known songs thrown in for good measure. I really like the variation of each song throughout the EP.
Across some tracks you will hear instruments such as violins and the sweet gentle sound of harmonica; it's nice to know that some musicians still believe in using good old fashioned instruments, as I would call them. You can also hear the guitar and bass and of course the sheer brilliant piano keys across the songs.
Adrian and Julie's vocals blend so effortlessly together and you can hear the strong bond that they have with each others voices. The best song on this album would be self penned song called "All of our Dreams" this showcases the talent that these guys have.
The Maquisards EP Nine Songs has a little something for everyone.

Review by Jennifer Ormsby

3.5/6

Myspace page

The Bowbridge Band

 

That's as Good as it Gets

As I sat there looking at the cover of this album and listening to the first track one word kept flying around in my head- "Strange." This band is a Leicester/UK based foursome featuring Howard Fairey, Ian Parr, Robyn Gibson and Peter Stafford.

The music has a very pop rock feel when it starts off, and delivery and construction of the tracks are remnant of some early Beatles tracks. But occasionally on the album little things pop up such as the spoken vocals on "All Inclusive" that I can only assume are read straight from a holiday magazine.
Lead vocals on the album are always in tune, but I feel the singer does not put in as much effort as their strong instrumentation would suggest. Backup vocals are rarely in tune which really does draw from the album.
If you have an older music pallet this is definitely the album for you. Overall the few hiccups in the album are over shined by rocking tracks such as "Lounge Lizard" with a fantastic solo near the end. Also something that deserves a mention is the subtle bass lines on tracks like "Black is Black," it's fantastic to hear a "bassist" who can actually play bass nowadays.
I really hope this is not all we will hear from the guys, but with a few improvements to the vocals hopefully this album won't be as good as it gets.

Review by Philip Dalton

4/6

http://www.myspace.com/thebowbridgeband

Terawrizt

 

Re-Visited
Re-Visited is the latest album release from Dublin rapper Andy Brady aka Terawrizt, and is remixed by UK music producer Tony O'Mahony. The opening track "Life" one thing that stands out is that it's Irish Hip-Hop, with Terawrizt unashamedly been himself with his distinct Dublin accent, and his effortless and at time lazy sounding flow. With this combination he effectively reflects unemployment, political corruption, what he sees on a daily basis and what he has grown up around in his native city.
Another refreshing thing about the album is that Terawrizt throughout seems to be motivated by what is going on in society, and the social injustices we are facing as a nation, Terawrizt flow accompanied by some slick, smooth beats makes for a very enjoyable listen. The wordplay and rhyming on this album is also top notch.
One of the stand out tracks on this album is Uncivilized featuring Nu-centz and Redzer, which is aimed at the social problems faced in modern day Ireland, the beat and hook bares a distinct resemblance to some of Eminem's earlier offerings, yet it does not lose its very own authentic Irish feel, both Terawrizt and Nu-centz collaborate very well together and there is a natural, unforced flow threw-out the track. Another ear catching track is Grown Man Music, which again features Nu-centz.
For far too long Irish rap has been unfairly, and somewhat jokingly branded as "Paddy's" wanting to be "African Americans",(justified in some cases) but a listen to this offering might have some of those so called self appointed music "Purists" thinking again. (Not that they'd admit it).
One thing is for sure, Irish Hip-Hop is on the rise and if the standard of Re-Visited is anything to go by, then so too is Terawrizt.

Review by POC (HipHop Reviewer)

http://shop.terawrizt.com

The Vibes

 

 

WOW" that's the way to describe these guys from lovely Co. Leitrim/Ireland. Looking them up on YouTube I keep pressing the replay button so much that I think YouTube might bar me. This reviewer really can't get enough of these guys.

Lyrically they are amazing. Their songs are heartfelt and tell stories that we are all too familiar with starting over. The music is just suburb and it also helps that there all easy on the eye to girls. The drum beats, guitar riffs, bass lines they are all thought out to sheer perfection. These guys have the power to inspire you through their lyrics and really put a smile on your face, to me that's something money can't buy. The Vibes are the type of band that you will never tire of hearing.

Review by Jennifer Ormsby

Review: 6/6

The Vibes music site

The Other Dances

 

 

Indie-pop band "The Other Dances" have released a single of 4 different songs that I can only describe as fantastically infectious!

Vocalist Ben Anstis, has a wonderful voice which is perfectly fitting for the music written by The Other Dances.

The vocals on the CD it has to be said is transformed slightly from song to song the most noticeable difference is that of the track "Country Music" where Anstis uses his vocal talents to adapt his own voice to suit that of what the music requires, a talent really found within the indie-pop world, many other vocalist, it has to be said, will expect the music to change to suit their own limited talents, this is definitely not an issue for those in The Other Dances!

The Other Dances sound is quite reminiscing of the classic 60's-70's up beat songs, the one's you found yourself singing along to carefree of who might hear you. After listening to the CD a couple of times I can genuinely say I am actually in a great mood! They just have that upbeat quality that is really hard to top!

The Other Dances have wonderfully written songs, catchy relatable lyrics and a great upbeat spirit. I have great belief that this band is one to watch!

By Declan O'Toole

Review: 5/6

http://www.myspace.com/theotherdances

Tim Novak

 

Psalm on Sill

Boston, Massachusetts singer-songwriter and poet, Tim Novak has compiled "Psalm on Sill" an album of ten songs that have been playing on repeat in this reviewers house for the last 24hrs.

I am never really stuck for words to describe a musician, especially one of the acoustic/indie/folk genre. But Novak has left me speechless!

His collection of songs have reaffirmed my belief and love in the American vocalist and acoustic guitar.

To put it simply there is nothing I don't love about this CD, Tim Novak's musical abilities are simply unparalleled. His vocal talents have the ability to alter as required by each song, his song writing is often fun/often sweet/ often deep in meaning.

With songs such as "Prison on the Hill" and "These Days", Novak displays his fantastic abilities from his incredible instrumentals to his voice and song-writing. In particular his song "These Days" is perfectly bitter sweet!

The thing I love most about this album is, each song has the capability to alter the atmosphere of the entire room. It has both incredible up's and down's, it's not often a collection of songs from the same artist can do this. This is what great music is about! It should always have the power to move a person! I'm not afraid to say that this CD has done just that! and it wont be leaving my CD player anytime soon!

In a word, "Perfection".

By Declan O'Toole

Review: 6/6

http://www.myspace.com/timnovakmusic

21 Outs

 

Irish band the 21 outs have exploded on to the scene in Ireland in the past few years, supporting the likes of Jape and Republic of Loose. Their press reviews are really positive and their debut album is already out to buy on iTunes, with hard copies to be available shortly. If you haven?t heard them yet you probably should!

They describe themselves as Melodic Rock, and the album "Maybe I'll have yours" showcases a huge variety of styles. It's hard rock with a heavy blues influence and an emotional powerhouse of a lead singer. "The Rant" is very reminiscent of many metal bands out there but the album surpasses being pigeon holed into that genre quickly.

Acoustic track, "Been Through Worse", is really beautiful and the raw emotion in Philip Cassidy's voice will melt many a heart I suspect. By contrast "Must We" is verging close to a rockabilly sound, punctuated with blues guitar twangs and that gravelly rock voice. "Doormat" is a strong example of the bands blues credentials, guitar and dirty bass that make your hips sway. But the savagery of tracks like "Difficult You" and "Omega 3" makes you sit up and take notice that this is indeed a rock band!

With a spring tour being organised I think this band are on my list to catch live in 2011!

Review by Becky Beynon-Lewis

http://www.myspace.com/21outs

Treading Lemmings

 

Cliff Notes

I’m not too sure what’s going on with the album cover here. They say you shouldn’t judge a book by the cover, but with music it’s a little different, the sleeve needs to speak to you in some way and for a band looking to make a name for themselves, the cover REALLY needs to speak about who the band are and what they’re about.

I couldn’t work out what type of music Treading lemmings play from the album cover. And looking at the tracklist, I got a sense of heavy metal and was totally taken by surprise at my first listen.

Treading Lemmings remind me of the UK in the late 70’s early 80’s when punk bands started to learn how to play their instruments and learn how to write songs. Cliff notes to me, is reminiscent of bands like “The Ruts” “The Squeeze” “the boomtown rats” and “The Stranglers”. Lots of energy, good music to listen to when you’re getting ready to go out on a Friday night.

There’s also a similarity to newer bands, “Kaiser chiefs” in particular, but Treading Lemmings are a lot rawer, without the slick production, which I personally think is their strong point.

One of the main things a record company look for when signing a band is their ability to re-create live what they’ve recorded in the studio. Treading lemmings are certainly able to do this and I’m going straight over to facebook to click on their “like” button!

Review by Tobye Hillier

4/6

http://www.treadinglemmings.com/

The Butterfly Graveyard

 

Self titled

The eponymous debut from The Butterfly Graveyard is an eclectic mix of electronic, folk and tribal rhythms. Generally the songs stick to the same course, rarely deviating in rhythm or melody throughout the course of each track.

This in effect is not a bad thing; none of the tunes are in your face and the listener is able to relax and enjoy the songs. In many ways this is the essential chill out record; the myriad layers creating lush soundscapes for the listener to get lost in.

Opener “Writing You Off” sets the scene. The steady beats and creepy maelstrom of synthetic and acoustic instruments highlights the duos idiosyncratic approach to song writing and their ability to create an original sound.

Album highlights include the defiant “Underdog”, the genuinely touching “One In A Million”, the stripped back “I’m Lost (When I Can’t See The Stars In The City)”, and ambient “Falling”.
However, the album is so full of rich melodies and tiny details that it is hard to make a fair judgement after only a few listens.

At times the lyrics are esoteric and hard to follow and the tunes can be somewhat repetitive; however, the hypnotic melodies and gentle vocal harmonies suck the listener into the world of The Butterfly Graveyard.

It’s clear the lads put a lot of work into the recording, which took over three years to finish. Each listen reveals new sounds and textures that perhaps went unnoticed on the first play and as a result this is an album that demands the attention of the listener. Those that stick with the album and give it the attention it deserves are in for a real treat. Lets just hope it doesn’t take another three years for the next album.

Review by Stephen Walsh

4.5/6

http://www.myspace.com/thebutterflygraveyard

The Libary Suits

 

Suffer: Recover

I’m finding myself lately, reviewing albums by bands I haven’t heard of. Normally, I see a name of a band I don’t know and I’ll Google it, maybe watch a video on YouTube or MySpace and probably be influenced by more than just the music.

The trouble here and now is, I haven’t got an internet connection at the moment. This means I can only listen to the promo I’ve been given to review.

But that doesn’t really matter for The Library Suits, because they’ve got me from the first listen. A band or artist makes a name for themselves by connecting in some way to their audience and their music becomes a soundtrack to our lives.

The Library Suits have this ability. Suffer; recover is up to the neck in passionate songs that suck you in from the first guitar chord. Songs that remind me of the American Emo movement, but there are reminiscent of European bands like Germany’s Fury in the Slaughterhouse or the UK’s Immaculate Fools.

The Library Suits are certainly all about the songs and if you like me, are the kind of person that wants their music to mean something, then this band should be in your playlist with five stars next to their name.

All I need to do now is visit a friend with internet so that I can Google them… Check out their page on MySpace BTW.

Review by Tobye Hillier

5/6

http://www.myspace.com/thelibrarysuits