Post by thesoundmonitor on Jun 21, 2004 8:31:45 GMT -5
R.O.A.D.S.
Double White Lines EP
(Independent)
An acronym for Remnants of a Dead Star, R.O.A.D.S. are in fact remnants of Thumlock, and as such spark intrigue and interest on their first independently released debut EP, Double White Lines. So Thumlock they are with an alternative skinsman (Kane Goodwin) and a more, dare I say, commercially driven sound.
As anyone who followed the ‘lock’s career would attest to, their final recorded outing Sojourns Lucid Magic hinted at a degree of immediacy and traditional song structure that eluded the band on previous outings. But it was only a hint. On Double White Lines the band are able to capitalise upon those ideas with a refreshed outlook.
Whilst the band have successfully distanced themselves from the boundary-ridden stoner tag, they still carry plenty of that genre’s hallmarks, but with a definite song-oriented approach, most evident on ‘Tin Can Hobo’. Opening with an energized bass riff, the beats roll in and the difference between drumming styles is blatantly obvious. Whereas Thumlock drummer Greg Eshman was deracinated directly from seventies space-prog, Goodwin appears well-versed in modern day riffrock allowing for a more solid structure to the tracks.
Vocalist Ben Lough still carries conviction like it’s a monkey on his back, but the new direction does allow him to explore with contrasts a lot more, whilst the lyrics have come down from the Hawkwind plateau and landed in reality. Indeed, ‘Electrocution’ is perhaps the Lough’s most personally revealing moment with “When my world falls / Don’t say a word / It’s OK, it will return / Let me dream and live my life / If nothing lives then nothing dies.”<br>
The EP is rounded off by the theme-driven semi-instrumental, ‘Bionic Pill’, which combines the riffs of AC/DC with a simplistic, disco-rock beat, voice samples and a jam-like crescendo, before Lough’s voice, sounding not unlike Stone Temple Pilots’ Scott Weiland, gets carried away on the breeze.
By Warren Wheeler
www.roads.net.au
Double White Lines EP
(Independent)
An acronym for Remnants of a Dead Star, R.O.A.D.S. are in fact remnants of Thumlock, and as such spark intrigue and interest on their first independently released debut EP, Double White Lines. So Thumlock they are with an alternative skinsman (Kane Goodwin) and a more, dare I say, commercially driven sound.
As anyone who followed the ‘lock’s career would attest to, their final recorded outing Sojourns Lucid Magic hinted at a degree of immediacy and traditional song structure that eluded the band on previous outings. But it was only a hint. On Double White Lines the band are able to capitalise upon those ideas with a refreshed outlook.
Whilst the band have successfully distanced themselves from the boundary-ridden stoner tag, they still carry plenty of that genre’s hallmarks, but with a definite song-oriented approach, most evident on ‘Tin Can Hobo’. Opening with an energized bass riff, the beats roll in and the difference between drumming styles is blatantly obvious. Whereas Thumlock drummer Greg Eshman was deracinated directly from seventies space-prog, Goodwin appears well-versed in modern day riffrock allowing for a more solid structure to the tracks.
Vocalist Ben Lough still carries conviction like it’s a monkey on his back, but the new direction does allow him to explore with contrasts a lot more, whilst the lyrics have come down from the Hawkwind plateau and landed in reality. Indeed, ‘Electrocution’ is perhaps the Lough’s most personally revealing moment with “When my world falls / Don’t say a word / It’s OK, it will return / Let me dream and live my life / If nothing lives then nothing dies.”<br>
The EP is rounded off by the theme-driven semi-instrumental, ‘Bionic Pill’, which combines the riffs of AC/DC with a simplistic, disco-rock beat, voice samples and a jam-like crescendo, before Lough’s voice, sounding not unlike Stone Temple Pilots’ Scott Weiland, gets carried away on the breeze.
By Warren Wheeler
www.roads.net.au