Demos

Rise East Strike West, Gunning For Tamar - To The Lions

Owain Paciuszko 02/01/2010

Rating: 3/5

Debut EP from Oxford quintet who formed at the dawn of 2009 opens with the angular, pop-rambling of the title track, toying with pacing in a post-Math kind of way, tumbling into posturing flurries of feedback and menacing piano. It's both muddled and melodic, and whilst interesting listening, it's not necessarily something one really remembers and longs to return to. As an introduction to an EP though it's a good start...

Steal the Sunshine at Your Peril has a slower stride, and generally fares better than the scatty opening track, Joe Wallis' vocals are harmonious and sidle up alongside the softer guitar lines excellently. The closing song scores points for its choice of celebrity name-check; Guns For Show (Knives for Jean Reno) sashays from the serene to the dischordant, managing to meld the diversity of the first two tracks into one with consumate skill, if not quite coalescing into something that's going to really turns head, it at least exhibits the sound of a band evolving and refining their sound and is a hopeful sign off to this act's future.

N.B. By the time this review was written the band had changed their name to Gunning For Tamar.