Artist: Symphony Cult
Title: Rewind To Fast Forward
Type: Album
Label: Copro Records

I had already made a mental ‘check out on MySpace’ note-to-self having viewed an ad for this album two days prior, so was pleased when it dropped through my letterbox. The ad told me very little in fact, but with the name Symphony Cult I was expecting something big and rather ostentatious with choirs and bombastic orchestration and all that jazz; well I couldn’t have been more wrong. Already they have had a glimmer of interest, having appeared at Download Festival and gained accolade from Bruce Dickenson, but when your dad just so happens to be Chris Slade of AC/DC fame it’s not a big surprise. It also comes as no shock that they haven’t managed to secure an actual record deal on the strength of this album either. This is the aural equivalent of your average secretary; it’s sort of pretty (though not stunning) but there’s not much going on beneath that preened aesthetic. In other words, this isn’t unpleasant to listen to, but it’s about as inspired as a five year olds drawing of the family dog.

The musicianship here is fairly solid and certainly they cannot be accused of sloppiness. The album kicks in with ‘You’ which is rather upbeat with a toe-tapping rhythm while the vocals are quite appealing. Charlotte’s voice is quite bright and chirpy at times and is pleasant enough, albeit straight forward and with obvious limitations. There is some strong guitar work on ‘Breaking Free’ while the chorus is nice and atmospheric. ‘The Answers In My Eyes’ has a similarly mellow vibe with emotive guitars that I find work well, while there is a certain quirkiness to ‘This Devastation;’ it has an easy-going flow that works even if it is totally predictable.

This band have found a safe formula and it’s one they adhere to rigidly; while a couple of the tracks are enjoyable, for the majority this is little more than bland and derivative femme-rock. I can quite easily see them schlepping their gear around student union bars, where as long as there is cheap beer, and the band have a bit of indie-cred and can play in tune no-one really minds. I have to say that these days it’s too easy for bands to self-finance a full length album without having the experience and in some cases the talent while in the past they would have stuck with demos and playing the underground until they were really ready. The point I’m trying to make is that these guys and gals are still young and if they have the drive to keep at this and put in a lot of work then I’m sure in a few years time they will be worth paying attention to. In the meantime, they are touring the UK extensively and even playing local to me; suffice to say I shall be giving them a miss!

http://www.myspace.com/symphonycult
http://www.symphonycult.com/

Luci Herbert

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