I’m sure I’m not meant to like The Blackout. Before today, I’d only heard very mixed opinions about the Welsh sextet, but while they’re not my new favourite band by a long way, they’re much better than a lot of bands in this genre. To be honest I may be one of the few people that hadn’t listened to The Blackout until this CD arrived. After shows with big names such as Lostprophets, 18 Visions and Avenged Sevenfold, plus a nomination at this years Kerrang Awards, the band look set to win a sizeable amount of new fans.
The six-track EP opens with the storming ‘I’m A Riot? You’re A Fucking Riot!’, with a riff that has a strong likening to Emanuel. The two vocalists work well together throughout the song, and while I’m not usually a fan of ‘screamed’ lyrics, the two vocal lines compliment each other. The song has a rock n roll feel that sets them apart from your average new band making waves right now.
Next song ‘Hard Slammin” is another solid effort, although doesn’t stand out as much as the first track. Track three however has a different sound, drawing a lot of influence from new Lostprophets, which won’t come as a shock to most people. Unfortunately the screams are starting to grate by this time, but take these out and the song is still a decent effort.
‘It’s High Tide Baby’, surprisingly enough, features guest vocals by Ian Watkins, and the fact that he’s singing about the summer just makes you think you’re listening to the ‘Prophets. The song is a catchy pop tune which I can imagine sitting well in the charts with or without the guest vocals. Track 5 and 6 however, don’t keep up the quality of the previous songs, and seem to blend into one another. The songs draw a lot more influence from American screamo groups and lack the innovation of the first two tracks. Having said that, the EP is a good gauge of things to come, and I can easily see the band reaching the scales that their Welsh counterparts have hit.
Andrew C