Mass Movement of the Moth "Finally!!" CD
[self-released]
When I popped open this odd looking demo and noticed that they have a synth player I was worried that I was in for some hipster bullshit, but thankfully that's not the case at all, and this is actually a pretty solid demo of strange screamo/indie material that's a little left of center as far as actual categorization and such. It's basically frantic music with lots of stuttered rhythmic shifts and caustic guitar work that at times gets a little more metallic, while other riffs come off more in the heavy/quirky indie vein. There are definitely a lot of changes and some cool layering between the guitars and bass, while the synths tend to stick in the background and thicken things up - adding more prominently oddball characteristics on occasion. It's hard for me to take some of that keyboard stuff as anything but hipster nonsense, but for the most part, sans a few similarities to actual tone, the way they're used here fits and doesn't distract. The vocals are scathing screams which, when combined with the noisier and more abrasive playing (see the third track especially), lead me towards the whole screamo sort of influence, but then there are also some fucked up ska riffs, energetic rock 'n' roll via twisted up punk rock, and metalcore pull-off runs, so... it's a mixed bag of insanity. The sound quality's fine by me. It's a little rough, probably intentionally, but the mix is clear and balanced. The drums sound totally natural and warm, the bass tone pounds away with a good deal of prominence, the screaming doesn't get overpowering or overbearing in delivery, the guitars are hard panned and have just the right amount of chunk to be heavy and dense without feeling like metal or anything, etc. The CD-R comes in a color xeroxed package with bright coloring and little illustrations of animals and creatures and general weirdness. No lyrics are included (I'd be curious to see them since the band name is weird as hell and there are no song titles either), but you will get a xeroxed insert teaching you how to make an origami moth with a waterbomb base. Hey, maybe that's what the lyrics are saying!? (Nah, they're not, but it would've been funny, eh?) I'm not blown away by this because I'm picky, but there are some forceful riffs here and I think their songwriting is pretty much on the right path. The little intricate dissonant chords that seep in at times tend to win me over big time, and I much prefer the more tangible rhythms to the more chaotic side of things, but... this is a good demo and I think the band will start to make a solid name for themselves if they keep at it. There's a definite audience out there for this kind of thing and these kids are actually pretty original in their own right, as they're building off of a different base of influences it seems, so... keep it up. There's a lot of potential here. (6/10)
Running time - 13:43, Tracks: 5
[Notable tracks: they all appear to be untitled]
Mass Movement of the Moth - http://www.mmmbrains.com

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