Melonfinger - This Is A Warning  

Twelve tracks that take you on a frenetic emotional voyage, as you whiz passed the topics of emotional liberty, ties of the heart and humanity in general accompanied by this Hertfordshire quintet. This offering features the haunting insight of Soundgarden, as Pob’s vocals are pitched at times, in the abyss between Simon Fowler and Chris Cornell, as is demonstrated in ‘Growing Cold’ and ‘See You Around’.

Diversity is proffered in title track that has a distinct Chumbawumba style in places before turning into a searing rock number with some A Perfect Circle riffs. The longing ‘Traveller’ sees Pob’s vocals take on a soulful and yearning feel when he rolls along with the weaving acoustic accompaniment. This outfit certainly have their fingers on the pulse of emotion and provide an offering that is bursting with feeling and passion. 

David Adair  

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www.melonfinger.com

www.dawgrecords.co.uk

Yena Veldt - Demo

This Northern four-piece are named after a Yiddish term meaning ‘the other world’ or ‘the middle of nowhere’, and whilst that’s a great notion, it doesn’t really relate to their music – but in this case it’s no bad thing on paper. For whilst it’s easy to spot their peers, the screeching guitars of Sonic Youth and the jarring chaotics of the Fall, this guitar music is definitely on the out-there side of indie rock, and that’s nothing but a good thing.

In practice though, the demo starts well, but maybe rests a little too heavily on its chosen path. I felt it was unwilling, or unable, to jump out of the pre-set conventions or take things beyond the path cleared by their influences. In ‘Semite Song’ the vibes are nicely mixed between scratchy abrasion and warm propulsive fuzz pulses. Punctuated with shouts and militantly regimented vocal yelps there’s a bunch of good ideas here and this is the most competently put together. The different styles are put together in an interesting and yet natural way. I felt this was the strongest song.

‘I Died Of A Broken Leg’ is a largely instrumental track (except a few TEAM like shouts) that definitely shares a Shellac and Dinosaur Jr angled anger. A series of loud into lulling crescendos ebb and flow. It’s competent music that still maintains a sense of momentum, but maybe doesn’t step away from its influences enough and starts to tire stylistically.

With ‘Abbreviation is a Long Word’ the art-school vocals return and start to grate despite the appealingly snotty delivery. By now there was the definite emergence of a receptive pattern: the music being played is music I really like, but it’s too close to stuff that I’ve heard before in no-wave and post-punk bands that were around 20 years ago. I didn’t really feel like enough had been changed form the original formulas of yesteryear. But this will definitely appeal to a devout crowd of noise lovers and guitar torturers alike though, and the influences I heard in the music were definitely from the school kick arse art-school rock, so it’s no shame at all, and Yena Veldt will no doubt form their own identity to continue this fine tradition a guitar saboteurs.

Jonathan Falcone  

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Miss T & The Japanese Tourists - Killing Me

(5 Track Demo)

Babydoll indie/gothic punk with a dominatrix edge to it is enough to frighten off even a former Cabinet Minister, but Miss T's infectious beat and raw but alluring vocals lure you into her web of seduction, sordidness and pure fun. The seedy and alluring 'Little Girl' displays all this London outfit's boldness and provocative nature that is oozed from Miss T and encapsulated in her P J Harvey cat-fighting with Madonna vocal range. The playful title track zaps into your consciousness; a sense of fun and danger mingled together making it hard to differentiate the boundaries between the two.

Buzzing around the London underground scene with endeavour, attitude and frivolity has seen Miss T and co creeping closer and closer to recognition and a record deal, but their salaciousness and forthrightness may frighten and alarm mainstream huggers. Good!  

David Adair

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Napeleon IIIrd – demo

3/5

During the summer of 2002, Leeds based electronic avant garders Little Japanese Toy looked for all the world as though they could be going places – and I don’t mean across the Pennines. Their ‘Finger Mouse’ single heralded their Casio led Pavement-esque rock as being quirky but expansive and then the next thing you know, they’re gone. For good.

Napoleon IIIrd is the brainchild of ex-LJT singer and guitarist James, and while this two track demo will obviously warrant some kind of comparisons – listen to the Mo*ho*bish*o*pi go fishing with DynoRod after lysergic nourishment that is ‘Anthem For The Board’ for instance – and you’ll see that the initial headrush of his previous band is omnipresent here.

Second song ‘Guys In Bands’ isn’t quite as prominent, but still kicks up more than a stink alongside numerous more established and feted artists.

In fact, the most striking thing about these two recordings are their propensity to veer away from any previously trodden path you care to mention, and not since Shellac’s initial burst of aural derision and 65 Days Of Static electro-post modern post rock has anyone successfully negotiated their way through that dense forest of enigma.

Dom Gourlay  

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Contact: toyhq@yahoo.co.uk

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Silent Partners – demo

Back in the day when the first wave of Mancunian guitar music was sweeping through the underground and embracing the mainstream like a long lost son, a band by the name of Northside emerged at the tail end.

Built up by the media as the people most likely to carry the torch for Manchester into the next decade and beyond and then knocked down by the same hacks in an eagerly spectacular fashion, Northside disappeared almost as quickly as they arrived.

A sad end really, as only the hard of hearing and leaden of foot could fail to be moved by the rhythmic nonchalance of ‘Shall We Take A Trip’ and ‘Take 5’, and yet not totally unexpected as the pendulum had started to emigrate towards Seattle by then.

So it would only take a brave man to re-emerge from said wreckage over a decade later, but that is what Northside’s old frontman Warren ‘Dermo’ Dermody has achieved with his new project Silent Partners.

This two track demo highlights Dermo’s penchant for melody, as both ‘Killer’ and particularly ‘News Of The World’ offer an updated, mature version of the delights his old band cast aside during their Factory days.

Lyrically both tracks verge from the sublime (“You know where you stand with a killer” – ‘Killer’ and “No more Judas friends… I’d salute you but I’d like to shoot you” – ‘News Of The World’) to the ridiculous (“the way you dance is the way you fuck” – also ‘News Of The World’).

Just as well then that ‘Killer’’s brooding claustrophobic melody and ‘News Of The World’’s e-shaped trampoline groove both suggest that Dermo could soon be joining his old mucker Rowetta in fame’s second chance saloon.

3/5

Dom Gourlay

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The Betes Noires - The Betes Noires 

(Double EP)

The fusion of EPs from March 2004 (EP2) and September (2003) produced by the earnest Belfast based trio sees them giving off a sincere and clattering feel. The fusion of prominently strident guitars and an uplifting keyboard instrumental accompaniment with the soft and soulful vocals of Paul Mciver and Simon Kelly, wows listeners by producing emotional and intelligent music in the robust vein of The Electric Soft Parade and, to a lesser extent; Feeder. 

It is tough for the untrained ear to separate the two EPs because they merge together in a mass of frantic music as well as at times; disgruntled and lacerating lyrics, such as in ‘Plastercut’;

“You don’t seem happy I’m around, you lock yourself up in your sound. You hide your courage in your frown“.

The Betes Noires possess that impressive ability to lift things up from maudlin and humble beginnings to cheery and sprightly endings. ‘Clean’ being an example of this, as the slow start simply tugs at your heart like a love poem before the heavenly vocals release your soul and spirit, well at least for a few minutes anyway, until the start of the next track. The feel good anthem that could kick or punt (if you prefer?) this likable trio into recognition is ‘Show Of Strength’ that proffers the “be strong until the end” motto. This debut contains enough to divert interest away from much of the sap pop out there and is as natural as a spring lamb, not a distorted vocal within earshot.

David Adair

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The Cut (Demo) 

Slow and funky guitar pop is delivered with gusts of soulfulness and sobriety by this harmonious Huddersfield based trio. ‘Pour Your Love’ with its dreamy and floating instrumentals massage the mind while the mellow and matured vocals of Alex Krzesinski varnish this polished offering. The message of the band that is conveyed through the simple yet effective lyrics is one of emotional liberty:

"The life that I'm leading has changed me for sure; remember the feeling, but now she wants more go let it out pour your love upon me."

Things get funkier as the three track demo progresses with ‘Way I’m Feeling’ having a Maroon 5 in cruise control feel to it. The mood of the track is a slightly cynical one, as feelings of loneliness are conveyed with the depth of a George Orwell character. Having just secured a management deal with Landstar UK The Cut are all set for scything their way into the public domain, with their funkiness being more than enough to keep them there.

David Adair

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The Bridge - Sex and drugs a guide for people who need to know 

(Demo)

It is patently obvious from the outset that The Bridge is going to divide critics in the same way that many great, good, notorious or crap bands have oft done in the past. There will be those who will dub them as derivative as a sausage-making machine with a clock stuck on it. However, there is also enough evidence on this tempting three-track demo, like in opener ‘Pain Towers’ to suggest that they have what it takes to pour rocket fuel into the fiery rock engine ignited by Jet. This track is a high-pitched rock pounder, featuring lle Almqvist (Hives) type vocals that kick in to give the track added vibrancy.

The sheer power, energy and anger possessed by this Warrington based outfit could see them making more trips over the murky Mersey waters, out of town to spread their dingy and powerful sound. The key to their success is the last track ‘PYT’ featuring Jaegger meets Caleb Followill vocals, against a backdrop of ripping The Music style instrumentals and bizarre hip hop like backing vocals in places. Thus demonstrating that unlike many garage rock bands The Bridge possesses diversity to go with their boldness. Suffice to say these Howley howlers will be talked about.

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www.about-the-weekend.co.uk

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SohoDolls - Ribbed Music For The Numb Generation

(Demo)

Two provocative party crashers of the feminine persuasion are set to dazzle, tease and sway the underground with their brand of Ladytron meets Replubica electro funk with a shade of cheeky The Rezillos new wave cheekiness. This tormenting five track teaser kicks off with a playful ode to the often overlooked young monarch ‘Prince Harry’, but not by Patricia X and Macy Y who reveal admiration and matrimonial intentions towards the young air in this intriguing keyboard fuelled opener.

The two luscious London lasses tackle more seedy topics than ‘The Daily Star’, but with far more dignity in this offering with ’Weekender’ being a particular highlight. Crushes and temporary liaisons are emphatically denunciating, as you sense there is a hint of seriousness to the prima facie fun loving pair. If Karen O catches wind of what this fresh new act is up to, then she will be shoving the French bread she uses at gigs in different directions than down her top in order to remain the music media’s plaything. 

David Adair  

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Love Ends Disaster – Volume II  

For those of you who’ve never been fortunate enough to witness the Love Ends Disaster live experience, fear ye not because ‘Volume II’ collects three of the most vital staples of their chaotic-yet-heroic live set and runs them through the blender AKA the studio mixing desk and…Hey Presto! The results are astounding.

In case you’re all sat there scratching your heads in dismay, here’s a quick introduction. Love Ends Disaster are a five piece based in Nottingham, Loughborough and beyond who make thought provokingly energetic music that is equal parts Mogwai, Talking Heads, Radiohead and the Gang Of Four. Their previous demo (entitled ‘Volume 1’, natch…) was recorded entirely live and although the potential was there for all to see, it failed to truly encapsulate the kind of exuberant ferocity evident when seeing the band in the flesh.

Fortunately, ‘Volume II’ does just that with ‘John Major’s Megadrive’ (sample lyric: - “Replaced his heart with a stone in the back of the nineties…”), three minute burst of post-punk that reduces The Futureheads, Art Brut and all those other bands the NME have been fawning over for months to mere pub band status. ‘This New Wave’ meanwhile transcends a similar ocean of sounds to those encapsulated by the ‘Head on ‘Hail To The Thief’ except it’s err…got a tune.

The undoubted highlight of the demo though is the polemic ‘Sendai’, a masterpiece that evokes ‘Damaged Goods’ era Gang Of Four with the Mars Volta’s more sporadic musings, while singer Oakes uses his most Byrn-ian way of expression in observations such as “Hello Sendai, notice how everyone’s good looking now…”.

All in all then, ‘Volume II’ is one of the most accomplished demos I’ve had the pleasure of listening to all year and with an imminent single deal in the pipeline with Denial Records, the future looks intermittently rosy for Love Ends Disaster.

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The Exploits Of Elaine – Happy The Sky  

So, the genre of post-rock may not be held in the same esteem as it was a decade or so ago, when people like Bark Psychosis, Slint and Mogwai were aurally redefining the way emotion and dissipated angst could be conveyed without the need for Kevin The Teenager-style rages against tidying up their bedroom – in fact, without the need for lyrics at all.

Telford based five piece The Exploits Of Elaine simply add their own panoramic transfusion to the aforementioned cast list via what sounds like a spaghetti western soundtrack (‘Red Rag To A Bull’) and the spine-tingling Morricone meets Eno grandiosity of ‘Twenty Miles Of Nowhere’.

Whilst cynics would probably say that this type of thing has been done a hundred times before, only someone with the hearing propensity of a doorpost could fail to recognise the sheer beauty in the four-minute space opera on wheels that is ‘Fear Of New York’ and not be purposefully blown away to another planet.

As demos go, ‘Happy The Sky’ is a pleasant surprise from the usual round of Oasis and Strokes wannabes, and while it is highly unlikely that the MD from Sony will ever come knock-knock-knocking on TEOE’s door, their undoubted panache and sprightly musicianship should be enough to ensure they don’t remain in the “unsigned” queue much longer.

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www.theexploitsofelaine.com

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