The last few months... (EP edition)

...work and life and stuff catched up with me and this blog. At least I still did my best keeping myself up to date, discovering new music every now and then. No chance of reviewing any of those records but I would like to mention some of them. Let's start with a handful of EPs...

CHIMES OF BAYONETS - Indexer
This is the follow up to last years' "Archiver"-EP. If you liked that trio of songs you will like the new trio as well. Pretty much everyone who listened to these guys was comparing them to JAWBOX (myself included), ironically this new 7inch was produced by J. Robbins. World's a tiny place. (Bandcamp)

EYECANDY - Supernova
Out of Oxnard, California comes a breath of fresh air. EYECANDY play noisy Post-Hardcore with cool experiments spreading all over this EP, but still they find a somehow easy way to totally catch me, to draw me into their songs. I could make it simple by telling they sound like the baby of UNWOUND and DRIVE LIKE JEHU, but it wouldn't do them any justice. Vocals and lyrics are way more prominent and really add their own to these recordings. I also hear bands like SONIC YOUTH, Q AND NOT U, TRIP FONTAINE, SLINT or NATION OF ULYSSES in this. That's a lot of namedropping for one of the most original Post-Hardcore-bands of the last few years. Amazing stuff! (Bandcamp)

FEVERCHILD - s/t
This band from Belgium pulls all the right triggers when it comes to 90s-Indie-Emo in the vein of MINERAL or SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE. The production made me directly fall in love with this EP and the singer is doing a great job as well. Maybe the songs are a bit too thin/short, at least if you compare them to the aformentioned legends but hey, this is their first bunch of songs! (Bandcamp)

FIRE & FLOOD - Through Hate, Through Healing
I've been digging this EP since it came out in mid-July. This hits the middle ground between the desperate, Youth Crew-inspired Hardcore from the likes of DEFEATER or MODERN LIFE IS WAR and the harsh, metallic Hardcore of UNBROKEN. Also the nihilstic lyrics are heavily reminiscent of the latter. I was skeptic about the song lengths at first but FIRE & FLOOD still manage to stay entertaining when their songs hit the 4 minute mark. In general this EP was put together really well and FIRE & FLOOD prove that you can still sound original in 2021 when you're blending Hardcore and Metal. (Bandcamp)

NO LONGER AT EASE - s/t
Another debut effort, this time straight out of Charlotte, North Carolina. NO LONGER AT EASE fall right between BANE and VERSE and that's something I like, as this kind of sound was not that popular the last couple of years. It has all the Youth Crew-aesthetics but combined with a deep emotional tone. This sounds passionate as fuck. I'm looking forward to a possible full length. (Bandcamp)

PARTING - Unmake me
This self called "Emo Supergroup" consists of former EMPIRE! EMPIRE!, DOWSING, ANNABEL and HAWK & SON musicians. I didn't really believe in this project at first, not because I don't like some of the mentioned bands but because I'm not really a fan of all these revival and Supergroup stuff that fails to impress more often than not. But... big BUT... this made a solid first impression, grew on me spin after spin and totally struck my heart when I sat down reading those beautiful lyrics. Those lyrics are some of the best the genre saw in the last 10 or so years and back up the approach of this grown up Emo-thingy. Yeah, this is Emo for the grown ups and sadly (?) I can relate to this a hundred percent. (Bandcamp)

SPARING - Old Dreams
We go back to North Carolina with this one. I was questioning myself if one can already call this a new wave of Emo-Pop or something, but bands like SOMERSET THROWER, STAND STILL, KOYO and SPARING drag me back to my miserable adolescence. This five piece leans more on the melodic side of things and reminds me of the time when this kind of style was a breath of fresh air and not a cash cow. Check this out if you love early TAKING BACK SUNDAY and stuff. (Bandcamp)

STAND STILL - A Practice in Patience
Oh yeah, this was my most listened to EP in the last few months. Twenty years ago STAND STILL would already be signed by Victory or Vagrant Records. They rise out of the legendary Long Island-scene and would make their forefathers proud, no doubt. "A Practice in Patience" has the right blend of Hardcore, Punk, Emo and Pop, it has loads of passion, it has an authentic feeling to it and what amazes me the most, these guys know how to right some catchy hooks and chorusses. The one-two-opening-punch of "The Cave" and "ID" is pure perfection and in a sick kind of way it's downhill from there on, even if there are no "downs" present on this EP. Making a long story short, this is a tremendous debut! (Bandcamp)

TEAMONADE - Borderline
I'm kinda struggling to categorize TEAMONADE. They are signed to the Emo-label Counter Intuitive Records and hell yeah, this IS emotional. But it's not your MINERAL-Style-Emo. Neither is it the emo-ish Pop-Punk that also has it's home on their label. TEAMONADE are something else. Something special. I would just call this very emotional, soulful and experimental but at the same time really catchy Indie-Rock. At times this gives me solid MODEST MOUSE-vibes. Their singer Osi stands out as an exceptional talent. Her singing harmonies are beautiful and done well throughout this 4 songs, on top of that she changes her style fluently, even rapping a verse in the gorgeous opener "Weighed Down". The lyrics, dealing with her Borderline diagnosis, are heartfelt as fuck and the words flow in an elegant and clever kind of way. What brings the EP down a bit is the third track "Invisible", which is more of an interlude but it's as long as a "real" track and thus a bit redundant. Other than that, this is brilliant, deep and extremely addictive. (Bandcamp)