Bristol punk-rockers Everything We Left Behind claim to write fast songs and play them even faster live, and here on their recently released album ‘Our Ears Are Bleeding’, they prove that the sound of fast-paced no thrills punk rock isn’t dead and there is still a place for this genre of music in the overflowing boiling-pot of talent that is in their hometown.
The album is loaded with intensity and is clearly influenced by US punk bands that came of age in the 90s (think NOFX, Blink 182, Less Than Jake and the like), with rapid drums, juddering chords and raw vocals. It’s these vocals that set the band apart from their American influences, the voice of frontman/guitarist Josh Rees having a grittier sound than would be expected, giving EWLB an edge.
The eleven songs on the album roar by like an express train, filling your ears with powerful punk and drilling rhythm throughout your body. It’s fun and enjoyable, with songs like album opener ‘Generica’, a hard-hitting song with some depth in skilful yet simple guitar solos and nostalgic lyrics (“When I was young, I never believed anyone”).
Other songs, like ‘No Friend Of Mine’ and ‘Don’t Be Hasty’, show off the musicianship of the band members, drawing out a technical edge to their punk. The songs are well structured and the melodies are well thought out. The vocals are passionate and you can imagine the smiles of the faces of the EWLB guys while bashing out these tracks.
The band are quite clearly good at what they do, and don’t claim to be anything other than fervent punk-rockers. At times, this album can stray into repetitive territory, but luckily not to an extent so that it renders this group of songs obsolete. ‘Our Ears Are Bleeding’ won’t make your ears bleed, but it might make you dust off your old-school punk collection for a trip into memory lane.
No comments:
Post a Comment