Album Reviews
The Bonesaw
Romance
It’s
time to fall in love with The Bonesaw Romance … and see just how
far they’re willing to go on a first-date! The Bonesaw Romance are
riotous squalor merchants armed with sludgy riffs and a filthy, low-slung
insouciance. Helpfully, they describe themselves as AC/DC on crack! This
– their debut album is a dense, insistent affair – occasionally
too meandering for its own good, unfortunately. It’s only when they
loosen-up and kick out the dirt-box riffs that they really hit their stride.
This is uncompromising (but definitely not un-loveable) stuff. In a word:
Guttural. 6/10
Alexisonfire
- Crisis
3rd album from Canadian poster-boys Alexisonfire. The fact that ‘Crisis’
has been described as their most ‘user-friendly’ album yet
has caused some concern for their loyal fanbase – anxious that the
band are ‘selling-out’. Whilst the album is chock-full of
meaty riffs and massive choruses it’s still a long way off Pop’s
hinterland. Slick it may be, but the melody and aggression is still intact,
as is the dual-attack vocal-assault (described by the band as “a
couple of cartoon character angels and devils sitting on your shoulders”.
Either way, I get the impression the MySpace kids will be lapping it up.
File under: mascara and scarring. 6/10
John
Southworth - Yosemite
Over the last forty years Canada
has produced some damn-fine artists - unfortunately, John Southworth isn’t
one of them… Armed with glowing plaudits from fellow lightweight-troubadour
Ron Sexsmith and an album crammed with songs influenced by “AM oldie
radio stations, bird songs, nursery rhymes, fairytales and old inn sings”
Southworth has arrived on our shores to launch his album-shaped charm-offensive.
Depressingly, where he probably thinks he’s being charming he’s
actually being unbearably twee. On the off-chance that you’re a
fan of bland man-child nursery-rhyme pop feel free to take the plunge.
Otherwise – steer well clear. This is so inoffensive I actually
find it offensive. Listening to this shit could make you sterile. 4/10
All reviews by Tom Leins
