The Grizzly Twister - Ont Blod (Midmarch)
3/5
By: Charlie Potter
Well, I think that this has been my favourite Midmarch release so far. I really respect Midmarch - although I haven' t felt particularly passionate about any one release they have put out, I think that they're a good honest hardworking label that have done a good job sifting through a lot of bad metal bands to bring you the best that they could find.
Generally, I'm not that impressed by big riffage all that much these days. There seems to be a lot of bands who will do that and nothing else, not giving a moment's thought to melody, but there is real passion behind Grizzly Twister, so much so that I've got a lot of respect for these lads. There's no direct comparison to be made here, possibly a bit in the vocals, but there is something about this band that remind me of Will Haven, a band that I have always thought deserve more attention from more arty media, but that's a different story - the point is that The Grizzly Twister are taking on the universe with melodies that they clearly love. Surely this is the sort of music you're supposed to make when you're young, before your spirit is crushed?
Yeah, I would definitely say that this is no kind of chore to listen to - it's a good fun 31 minutes of pounding. By the time you've hit the midway mark you do begin to think, 'OK guys, you've done that bit now', but then there's still the occasional really satisfying riff to keep you going, and it helps that all the sounds are in the right place. There's no showing off either which is refreshing, if there is any clear show of skill it's from the vocalist. And that's how it should be - there are too many whiney guitars in the world, and it's not that this guys is doing Mariah Carey arpeggios or anything, but where most singers are quite happy to hide the vocals behind the guitars, this guy is confidently standing with this band who are together acting as a solid unit - a pummel unit, built for sonic pummelling.
I quite like the drummer's snare work as well actually, nice snappy accents, no showing off, all mixed right. The production on this record is pretty satisfying overall, it in no way could be described as clean and takes a while to pick out some of the elements but it suits the pummel unit to be heard in this way.
If this band could get more variation in to the pummel, and if they gave some further glimmer that they are intelligent, thoughtful musicians, then I would invest in them heavily. It's not that far fetched an idea. Sure, it's not happened on this release, and there is a dangerous touch of the melodramatic cheese that could ruin everything if they don't keep it in check. But at times it's this emotional quality that makes them so exciting.
There is a nice hint coming from the occasional keyboard sound that this could be the future which would be by no means a bad thing, but I think that if they could work to come up with something more structurally original, they could be a really special band.
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