Grin By Growl - Foreward For Tune
Promising stuff from another promising young band from Norwich
This, the debut release from Norwich based Grin By Growl, is a bit of a mixed bag.
Emily Sounders’ vocals bring to mind All About Eve’s Julieanne Regan and Anne-Marie Hurst of Ghostdance and Skeletal Family. The music courtesy of guitarist Johnny Parr, drummer Dave Taylor and bassist Robbie Wincup veers from dubbie post-punk to early goth via alt.rock.
Opener Rush is alt.rock with a healthy dose of Gene Loves Jezebelle. Unusual At The Funeral bears a passing resemblance to The Raincoats and Confusion Is Sex period Sonic Youth. The Bitterest Taste takes things up a gear, hinting at the poppy goth of Ghostdance or The Bolshoi. With dubbie rhythm section and post-punk guitar, Self-Taught Lies recalls PiL and The Slits. The acoustic Made My Bed is in the same vein as All About Eve’s Martha’s Harbour. The rattling dub-punk-alt-goth closer Cracking A Smile is the stand-out, a thing of originality and a little twisted beauty.
This is not perfect. The sound is thin. At times the arrangements are a little clumsy and some backing vox sound like guide vocals that should have been take out of the final mix. But, this promises much and should be appreciated for that.
(7/10)
