Tethered - Demo

Labels: Self-Released/strictly no capital letters

Formats: Digital/Tape

Release Date: 19 Aug 2023

Tracklist:

1. torches

2. dust

3. motorhinder

4. shred

5. nostalgia

In spite of all the music from new bands dropping of late, I'm picking up on music by bands (and people) whom I've long admired and featured here many times before. This write-up is a mix of new band/familiar faces, as the UK's Tethered features Andy (previously of Arkless, What Price, Wonderland? etc). Andy very kindly wrote to me recently to let me about Tethered and their debut demo, which was self-released in August last year before strictly no capital letters gave it a tape release in March. 

Writing an opening review sentence and then deleting it again is currently my favourite hobby apparently! Tethered make a noise that’s filled with hardcore-punk energy on opener ‘torches’. I get vibes similar to Amyl And The Sniffers, Sheer Mag and the early hardcore attitude of Black Flag. Rose does such a great job with the vocals on this release, especially as Tethered is the first band she’s fronted.

Listening to ‘dust’ is a joy too, as it’s off-kilter and almost retro sound envelopes you with such warmth. I’m properly nostalgic for the days when MRR was a paper zine, in fact I still have all of the copies from when I used to subscribe. I can picture Tethered being reviewed and featured amongst those hallowed pages now.

‘motorhinder’ has a really old-school emo/post-hardcore sound to it and reminds me of the raw energy of Boysetsfire’s This Crying, This Screaming, My Voice Is Being Born. It grabs you with it’s immediacy but also it’s heartfelt musicianship, which as I’ve already alluded to, almost comes from a different era.

’shred’ has the immediacy of a powerviolence song to begin with before Tethered fall back to the more familiar hardcore-punk that’s filled this EP so far. Rose’s angry yet clean vocals, alongside the instrumentation of Andy, James and Pablo shows that the passion still rises to the top in the UK scene. The recording and mixing job done by Matthew Green at Head Cold Recording manages to harness that passion brilliantly too.

EP closer ‘nostalgia’ is a great one to end on, channelling every last ounce of emotion and bitterness that remains. This is one of those EPs that goes by in an instant, but is also one that leaves quite a mark because of it. I’ve witnessed bands with so much potential fade after one EP. Here’s hoping Tethered won’t be one of those because they have so much more to offer.

You can stream and grab the demo as a name-your-price download below:-

Physical tape copies are available to buy form strictly no capital letters here - https://sncl.collective-zine.co.uk/product/tethered-demo-tape/

strictly no capital letters - https://www.facebook.com/strictlynocapitalletters

Erai - Only Future EP

Labels: lifeisafunnything/strictly no capital letters

Formats: Vinyl/Tape/Digital

Release Date: 30 Oct 2020

Tracklist:

1. You Must Be A Ghost

2. Life Among The Savages

3. Sixteen (Only Future)

4. Version

Another one of my favourite German post-hardcore bands Erai just dropped a new four-song EP. It's only just been a year since the release of their second full-length Before We Were Wise And Unhappy, but here they are, spreading more musical cheer during these tough times. Only Future will be available on vinyl (from German label lifeisafunnything) and on tape (via UK label strictly no capital letters) with pre-orders currently live for the vinyl pressing. It's also available digitally via Erai's bandcamp page.

For an EP, Only Future’s running time is really generous. Opener ‘You Must Be A Ghost’ is a dark mix of post-hardcore and post-punk to begin with. The clean vocals are slightly haunting and together with the repeating riffs, it sort of reminds me of The Cure in places before Erai steps into more familiar territory. The bass is more prevalent on the recording and the percussion seems to sit quite high in the mix, adding a sense of chaos to the music. It’s controlled though and the quintet knows how to weave introspection and thoughtfulness into every passage.

As with some of the other screamo/post-hardcore releases I’ve reviewed over the last few weeks (especially Black Love more recently), Erai is venturing further into earlier territory in terms of the sub-genre and ‘Life Among The Savages’ has that light/heavy mix going on where the band moulds melodic instrumentation with fluctuating harsh/clean vocals and the occasional increase in dissonance. It also goes by too quickly.

Garage/Indie are not the first genres you think about when listening to Erai, but there is a nod to both on ’Sixteen (Only Future)’ in places. This is a more thoughtful song all round with energetic bursts of hardcore alongside quieter passages that are joined by spoken-word samples and extended instrumental sections. It’s a glorious song filled with atmosphere and genuine feeling. As the sun radiates my living room, the positive disposition of the music gives me the same energy.

EP closer ‘Version’ begins immediately afterwards with gentle acoustic guitar and ambience before exploding into a really cinematic and expansive instrumental, with subtle black metal atmosphere being injected into Erai’s post-hardcore. It’s got an electronica vibe and the spoken-word passage is heart-wrenching, showing the sentiment and humanity that exists within Erai’s song-writing and performance on Only Future. The vocals sit deep in the mix here, letting the music envelope them and in doing so, make this the perfect song to end on. 

I think perspective and self-reflection are very important things at the moment and this EP allows you to do both, whether it was intended or not. Music is such a big part of our lives and often what we hear/listen to is dictated by our moods. In this case, Only Future dictates your mood and provides the basis for calming meditative thoughts and feelings. It’s more than just another post-hardcore release.

You can stream and download Only Future via Erai's bandcamp page below, where you can also pre-order it directly from them:-

Erai - https://www.facebook.com/eraibln/

Physical copies can also be pre-ordered from lifeisafunnything and strictly no capital letters below:-

lifeisafunnything (vinyl) - http://lifeisafunnything.limitedrun.com/

strictlynocapitalletters (tape) - https://sncl.collective-zine.co.uk/ (Note: pre-orders for the tape pressing are not available yet, but keep checking)

lifeisafunnything - https://www.facebook.com/lifeisafunnything123/

strictlynocapitalletters - https://www.facebook.com/strictlynocapitalletters/

Dym - Ray's Front Teeth EP

Labels: Barely Regal Records/strictly no capital letters/Time As A Color/Kingfisher Bluez

Formats: LP/Digital

Release Date: 8th Dec 2017

Tracklist:

1. Four/Bi-Gone

2. Tried As Far

3. Web Held, Over/Under

4. Evil I Be Done

5. Hermitage

6. Short, Caught, Right Out Of Feeling

Last August I was lucky enough to see (and meet) Duct Hearts for the first time in Leeds. They were touring alongside Thisismenotthinkingofyou and Dym. I learnt recently that Dym had released an EP and I was given the chance to review it. Dym is a post-hardcore (by way of all kinds of musical influences) trio from London, who began life in 2016. After an initial demo tape, this is their second official release (except for the tape they produced specifically for their tour with Duct Hearts/TIMNTOY). All three members are extremely creative an are active in countless other projects, which means they can bring plenty of outside influence into this band.

From their gig with Duct Hearts et al. I remember Dym having a sort of lo-fi live sound but on record their sound is a lot more than that. Opener Four/Bi-Gone contains some lovely guitar riffs that sound like emoviolence/screamo riffs being slowed down to sludge-like tempos (that sounds weird but I know what I mean). The drums are quite easygoing and the vocals sit in the middle, slightly detached, which is probably where I got the lo-fi impression from in the first place. It’s experimental emo/indie and it’s a cross between Crash Of Rhinos and Simmer. Dym’s energy is felt more during Tried As Far, where they put more screamo influences into their music, especially in the vocals and the dissonance of the guitars. Web Held, Over/Under is another experimental (and sometime arty) number. It’s pretty restrained and there’s a brooding sense of foreboding that’s not often present in the sub-genre. The latter half especially is more violent and jarring at times. 

Ambient textures make an appearance at the beginning of Evil I Be Done, which seems to nod towards Americana briefly. Aside from the almost whispered vocals towards the end, it’s an instrumental. Dym is pretty happy to play lengthier songs and Hermitage is the second one that reaches the six-minute or over mark. It’s beautiful though, staying true to their less-is-more approach to songwriting. Following Hermitage is the record’s closer, Short, Caught, Right Out Of Feeling. It’s intro riff seems to directly follow on from the main riffs towards the end of the penultimate song, which mean continuation is strong. Vocals-wise it’s the heaviest yet Dym doesn’t hold back on the melody. It’s a short piece and it ends abruptly, albeit with the final sounds of bass guitar(?)/ambience once again. “Ray’s Front Teeth” is a nice and relaxing record but with enough musical impact to make you take notice. I’d definitely file it next to the music of the bands I’ve mentioned above. 

You can stream "Ray's Front Teeth" and get it as a name-your-price-download from Dym's bandcamp page below:-

Dym - https://www.facebook.com/dymtheband/

Physical copies are available from the below labels:-

Barely Regal Records - http://barelyregalrecords.bigcartel.com

strictly no capital letters - http://sncl.collective-zine.co.uk

Time As A Color - http://timeasacolor.com/shop/product-category/time-as-a-color-releases/

Kingfisher Bluez - https://kingfisherbluez.bandcamp.com

Barely Regal Records - https://www.facebook.com/barelyregalrecords/

strictly no capital letters - https://www.facebook.com/strictlynocapitalletters/

Time As A Color - https://www.facebook.com/timeasacolor/

Kingfisher Bluez - https://www.facebook.com/kingfisherbluez/