Lauren Hospital/Last Day Parade "split" 7"
[Kickstart Audio]
Lauren Hospital throws out one song ("Dark Times Are Coming, Volume One") of energetic and hard hitting indie rock with an edge on side A, reminding me of something along the lines of early Jawbreaker in its caustic sense of melody and not quite singing, not quite shouting vocals. There are some unexpected dual guitar harmonies (but not the way you'd think), but for the most part the track is driven by clinical percussion and a driving sense of rhythm. The recording is pretty even, if not slightly on the rugged side, but it works out. I like this. I'd love to hear more from them, especially with a slightly warmer and denser production. Last Day Parade offers up two short tracks in a somewhat similar vein, but they have more of a quirky At the Drive-In thing happening. Their recording is way too heavy on the treble, so the vocals cut right through the mix when the guy gets more abrasive, and there's a severe lack of low-end to keep things in control. It's a shame, because the songwriting isn't bad, and I could definitely be into this if it wasn't so unintentionally grating. "Hit the Ground (Running)" is much calmer, bringing in some piano and using only clean guitars and singing, so it comes off as far more effective tonally, though less interesting musically. The 7" comes in a simple sleeve with no insert or anything. The cover has the band names against a photo of some row houses, and the back cover continues the photo with boxes across the lower half for lyrics, lineup and recording information, etc. Both bands' lyrics are personal but not too specific, and therefore I can appreciate the approach even though the content doesn't particularly strike a nerve with me. Not bad. Lauren Hospital's got my attention for sure, but Last Day Parade needs to work out a few kinks. (6/10)
Running time - 10:00 (approximately), Tracks: 3
[Notable tracks: Dark Times Are Coming, Volume One, Leaf, Fire, Rain]
Kickstart Audio - http://www.kickstartaudio.com

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