Words: Rebecca Dixon

Leeds based band, The Wind-Up Birds release their first single Cross Country from their new album The Land. The download only, ‘pay what you want’ single is a strong choice and not only makes a lasting impression but also allows you to understand just what this Northern band has to offer the UK music scene.

Being known for their creative music videos such as Some Slum Clearances (check it out), the video for Cross Country definitely does not disappoint. It is filmed on a football pitch and follows a scrabble game played against a very unhappy man. If that isn’t enough to intrigue you, the track itself definitely makes up for that. The almost aggressive tone presented in this song added to the typically clever poetic lyrics of The Wind-Up Birds grabs your attention all the way through the track. Instead of being just a ‘shouty pissed off track’, lines such as ‘Oh wait, are you scared to go out at night? Well what papers do you read? Do you read the one about Cross Country?’ show The Wind-Up Birds well placed aggression at some of the problems in society today.

With the instrumentation in Cross Country, you could not ask for much more. Grabbing your attention straight away, the punchy attack of the drums as well as the fantastically filthy bass and guitar fuels this track with the energy needed to carry the eloquence of the lyrics throughout the entire track. The intensity each instrument brings demands the listeners’ attention and you cannot help but imagine the track being played live. These riffs will be in your head for days.

This intensity brings something different to previous tracks by The Wind-Up Birds and although not necessarily better, Cross Country certainly brings something new to the forefront giving us a taste of what their new album The Land has to offer.

Words: John Newspeaker for Noise Addiction

Back in the day after the initial burst of 77 Punk Rock, came the second wave of punk, and its art school garage sound of angular guitars and beating rhythms. Bands went from sounding like the Pistols or the Clash to The Gang of 4 and The Fall, and although these may be examples of the extremes in these genres there were a plethora of bands mutating into that cross over sound.

Well, this track reminds me of those good ol’ bad ol’ days, and I say that in a most respectful way, for it’s important to realise how important the past was, so we can finally get to The Fades modern garage sound. Now you know how we all got here (Darwin aside) I really like this track.

At first listen it was a tad repetitive, but The Fades relish this and force the issue upon the listener, just as they did with previous release ‘Meccano’. In fact it’s a fungus like grower, which is exactly what The Fades want it to be, and in the best interests of the reader, do check out The Fades older stuff which I personally prefer. So Let’s put their four year sabbatical, and my preferences to one side, and enjoy – ‘Joy’, the second instalment of The Fades, second coming, and lifted from their forthcoming album ‘Ragnarok’.

Imagine a tough Franz Ferdinand mixed with the bleak pop art of Buzzcocks sleeve designer Malcolm Garrett, and you could also throw in 78 bands like the Tights, with Ants/Burundi tribal drumming that cracks on from intro to outro. All references apart it sounds like The Fades. Which is by no means bad, and no mean feat!

Play it, and if you don’t like it, play it again, and if you still don’t like it, you’re in the wrong section.

Words: Charlie Wallis

The latest offering from Lost Without Cause, “Tourniquet” kicks in with a decent amount of intensity with an admirably adept level of songwriting skill. Vocally this band is interesting with powerful lyrics catch enough to capture the imagination of the current alternative music scene with a nice blend of singing and screaming in the choruses. The lyrical creativity and musicality of this band makes for an extremely satisfying listen, which begs for repeat play through.

Dynamically there’s plenty to keep the listening interested with big epic singing melodies interweaved with quiet building passages. The song really comes into its own when the half time chorus kicks in, truly evoking a sense of how the song would feel in a live setting. If one thing could be improved it would be the guitar sound which taints the overall experience slightly.

With everything taken into consideration this is clearly a band with an awful lot to offer the UK music scene and “Tourniquet” is a sterling effort from a band that have the potential to go very far indeed.

Words: John Newspeaker for Noise Addiction

Blimey! What to make of this? Well a great title to start with and a cool intro, but the opening vocal sounds somewhat bland. Urban funk name-checks plotted through the storyline still doesn’t save it. It has some really catchy bits and a cool back half to the song, but to be honest the lyrics made me think it’s a piss take, which I think it is to a certain extent. No disrespect to the band but I watched the video to try and get a feel for the track, and it really is cheesy middle class high school stuff. If it’s meant this way then I’ve missed a trick and ShyChlo are way ahead of the game, but although they have some decent supports under their belt I can’t take them seriously. They’re going for a Chase and Status/Linkin Park Pop Rap Rock thing which is great but it doesn’t wash when our heroine of the piece sings.

Go check the video and make your own minds up as the effort they’ve put in deserves better than my half page review – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZspKjKjzDA

I do actually like the song so my apologies to the band but the fact that it’s not for me could be a plus to them, because I would recognise them again if I heard them. Which in this world of music market saturation can only be a good thing.

Words: John Newspeak for Noise Addiction

Leeds based anthemic indie rockers Soul Circus, present two tracks for our entertainment. Your ringmasters are calling it a double A side single (A fact I find hard to imagine when there is no vinyl to flip) and while we are at it, apparently the physical CD also comes in a sharing 2 pack, which seems too desperate to be cool. But, all that aside, musically, both tracks are pretty good.

Burn The Map opens with a Killers riff as opposed to a killer riff, and takes me by surprise as the vocals enter the story sounding like 80’s band Fiction Factory. Fear not it gets better from here and steadily grows into a cracking radio friendly anthemic rock song. Guitars build like any good Coldplay song would and vocalist Lloyd warms up his pipes before letting rip into the chorus. He has a great tone if a slightly unplaced accent in his diction, which is cool but somewhat unexpected. Once we are travelling along nicely I can taste the guitars of Big Country as well as Editors and other modern aficionados of Indie Rock, which can’t be bad!

Consequences Of Youth starts with great potential and touches on many fine moments but whilst on this roller-coaster of a song, from tommy gun snare drums to Kaiser Chief call and response, it seems to lull a bit in the middle section, which I presume is the calm before the storm. So onwards and upwards we go with the vocals coming to the front, and all of the band crashing through the barriers and taking us higher. So was this the moment Soul Circus took us up into the atmosphere..

Well not quite but not a bad try. I wish them well, and I’ll buy a ticket if these boys come to town. www.soulcircus.co.uk