Review Summary: Brides first album is short, but it is very, very sweet indeed.
I was lucky enough to catch Brides at this years download festival. Their performance opened the sunday on the 2nd stage, and while it wasn't the biggest crowd of the weekend, the band really put on a show, and captured my imagination so much that it was the first thing I thought about buying when I got home.
Ocular.Unveil is the first album released by the Brighton band since their formation in May 2007, and it is suprisingly good.
While the song titles might sound vaguely like those coming from an OTT black metal band ('Eye Despise the Faceless', 'Endless Sea of Dirac'), the musical content is anything but. Opening track 'Beholder' begins with light piano keys and gentle crooning before shaping slowly into familiar territory, semi agressive guitars matched with growly, but energetic vocals.
'Serpent, I'm Nothing But Your Anchor' follows, and it's a wickedly upbeat affair, the drums are fast-paced and exhilarating, so are the guitars. The rest of the album follows suit in a familiar pattern, but it never stands still. Weirdly for this sort of genre, Ocular.Unveil almost feels like a feelgood album.
Perhaps unfairly by the British music press, this band has been compared to the likes of Gallows, The Ghost of a Thousand and even the Architects. While such links are flattering, they don't really hold weight when you listen to this album fully. Something like 'Grey Britain' revels in gritty vocals, harsh sentiments and at times, dirty guitar playing.
Ocular.Unveil is not any of those things. The album is fast paced and ecletic enough to keep any listeners attention. The sheer emotional agression of the vocals often prove to be uplifting, and moments of real musical inspiration abound - the short melodic interludes of 'Frank West' and album closer 'Velvet Ground' are inspiring to say the least, and are not totally unlike something you would hear on a newer Poison the Well album, or one by Modest Mouse.
Furthermore, album highlight 'Carcinoma' just oozes quality. Everything this album does well is highlighted in this one track. Eccentric, exploratory and emotionally striking - this is one band that deserves a little more attention.
If any critiscism is to be levelled at this album, it is that it is way too short. We might have eight songs of real quality, but at 23 and a half minutes long, it feels too short lived to really leave any long lasting impression. This lot are a talented bunch, and if they can move away from the doom and gloom crowd they've been associated with, they'll go far. Be sure to check them out.
Listen to these:-
Frank West
Carcinoma
Serpent, Im Nothing But Your Anchor
(The album can be heard on last.fm, but you can catch some of their better songs on their myspace: http://www.myspace.com/bridesmusic)
