EP Reviews: Strength ‘EPA’ & The Plea ‘Modern Chaos’
July 7, 2010 No Comments
Band: Strength
EP: EPA
Independent Release
Released to mark Record Store Day last month, this Derry-made ultra-limited edition handmade EP simply drips of a DIY ethic it’s pleasing to see still in existence. The harsh bubble wrap and black cover packaging perfectly complements the minimal lo-fi electronica within. The brainchild of former Red Organ Serpent Sound vocalist, Rory Moore, and with an almost shortwave quality to proceedings, ‘EPA’ fuzzes along with a simplistic yet raw merging of synths, bass and beats. All four tracks are a glorious distorted public address that Krautrock is alive and well in the North West, with Strength leading the charge. Limited copies of ‘EPA’ are on sale only at CoolDiscs, Derry. Alternatively, the EP can be downloaded online. (http://strength.bandcamp.com/album/epa)
Recommended to fans of: Kraftwerk; Suicide; Joy Division
By Mickey Ferry
Band: The Plea
Album: Modern Chaos
Independent release
Hailing from Ballyliffin and Strabane, The Plea deliver a brand of earnest guitar rock that will always have an audience and, occasionally, a major breakthrough courtesy to some Alan McGee-like spin. Debut album ‘Modern Chaos’ wears its influences quite unashamedly. The Nineties Brit-rock influence is evident from the off, strong up-front guitar riffs dominating tracks like ‘Hello’ and ‘Forever Gone’. It’s clear that The Plea are not reinventing the wheel by any stretch of the imagination, yet ‘Modern Chaos’ is not an album overwhelmed by its obvious points of reference. On the contrary, a free-flowing and soulful ballad like ‘Wind-chime’ has a swagger that many of The Plea’s more noticeable influences have failed to realise in recent times, and it’s impossible not be taken in by the simplistic charm of ‘Burn It Brightly’, which has all the hallmarks of ‘Reckoning’ era REM. Modern Chaos is an accurate document of a band having fun with the music that has shaped them and it works well on that level and should be enjoyed as such. The debut album is a guitar band’s honeymoon period. The follow-up will be the proper measure of The Plea, but until then this will do very nicely.
Recommended for fans of: Echo and the Bunneymen; The Verve; Oasis
By Mickey Ferry