Babies Three "The Luzhin Defence" CD
[Geek Scene]
Here's some heavy-ish emo/screamo sort of stuff from England that definitely has a little bit of a unique flare compared to a lot of these bands. It's really melodic and generally has a consistent flow to it, at times getting more into the choppy/jangly indie rock sort of vein, and mixing some awesome singing vocals with screaming. I find the screaming fairly irritating not only because it sort of clashes with the music, but also because the singing is very cool and the vocalist has an interesting voice that sets him apart. I guess the screaming fits with the heavier and more caustic riffing, but I'd still prefer to hear the singing at all times. The recording is really bass heavy, which can be a muddying factor at times, but the bassist is fucking great and his runs fly all over the place between the guitars and the drums, so I love the presence of that aspect in the mix. Everything else sounds good as well, I'd just like it to have a louder mastering job with a bit more cohesion between the instruments. As far as the writing, I like it for the most part. The rhythm section adds a lot of spice to the tracks, and the guitar parts are generally coherent and smoothly arranged. They handle the jangly and sort of loose playing expertly, the only thing I don't like are some of the faster, almost grinding moments in a sense - as they disrupt the feel of the EP and serve little purpose. Thankfully they keep that aspect well in check. "I Think the Answer's Yes" is a great piece with some rocked out riffing and a few more intricate uses of guitar layering, and they even do an awesome unlisted instrumental cover of Fugazi's "Merchandise" (with a little "My Cherona" tossed in). The layout is all done in black and white with strange illustrations and slightly dirty text that looks cool to me. The lyrics are a mix of bitter personal commentary and semi political messages, with "The Message" making fun of Rage Against the Machine (This must be an old release?) and such. I'm not that into the lyrics, but I can't really understand a damn word of it anyway, and the music is cool, so screw it. Good stuff overall. I'd like it more without the screaming, for sure. But this is definitely on its way towards the upper tiers of this particular style. (6/10)
Running time - 22:07, Tracks: 6
[Notable tracks: I Think the Answer's Yes, Merchandise]
Geek Scene Recordings - http://www.geekscene.co.uk

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