Zeitgeist Reviews -THE HITCHERS, UNFINISHED THOUGHT, CHEAP WINE, BRANT CHRISTOPHER, CAROL BLAZE

CD OF THE WEEK

UNFINISHED THOUGHT - Becoming Aware

"Becoming Aware" is the debut album from this 'ethereal rock' duo, comprising Stacey Nelson - Vocals, Piano and Joe Kiser - Guitars, Bass, Keyboards, Programming. Their sound is built around delicate vocal harmonies and powerful, yet understated, guitar playing. As befits an outfit with one foot in the gothic camp, the lyrical concepts are explorations of themes such as mental illness, obsession, addiction, and depression.

They maintain your interest by interspersing elements of techno and industrial hardcore beats, whilst paying homage to past masters like Tangerine Dream. There are sublime washes of keyboards, layered throughout the music, pushing you further into the sound. Staceys voice is an alluring item, insinuating through the back door, draqgging and disturbing.

In places, Unfinished Thought reach extreme heights, and for a first release, this is quite outstanding, peaking as it does on the genre busting title "My Valentine's Last Breath". Their second release is due soon, and both should be near the top of your dark exploration list.

UNFINISHED THOUGHT

Unfinished Thought

BRANT CHRISTOPHER

CAROL BLAZE

THE HITCHERS

CHEAP WINE

BRANT CHRISTOPHER - Cursed (promo CD single)

A name that will be familiar to those of you who've been to Greenbelt, Brant is the latest name to pick up an acoustic guitar, combine it with a smooth singing style and a troubadour photo gallery.

But what lifts Brant from the ranks of wannabee folk singer songwriters looking for that movie soundtrack placement is the song. "Cursed" is an upbeat spiritual pop rock song which comes replete with a stunning melody. There's a hint of grittiness at the edges of the voice, the performance is superlative, and you can feel the conviction in what he's singing.

Brant says, “I want to write about reality. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I don’t live in reality. So I sit down with people and have them tell me about their lives. I listen to their problems, questions and success stories and try to write about them. I usually find that in the middle of trying to help someone else, I always end up helping myself.”

His CD should be ready around the end of April, will be called "Circus Life" and will most definitely be one to check out.

CAROL BLAZE

I am not a number, I am Carol Blaze, or rather drummer A T Vish is. Carol Blaze acting as a collective name for a solo project. And apart from a couple of guest vocalist appearances, this is a completely solo project forging a route through a mixture of drone, spacerock, industrial and pure experimentation.

The opener, "Beyond" is a trance filled delight, throbbing an pulsing away. "Slow Shake" is the first vocal track takes elements of drone and goth, wrapping it around a hypnotic bass riff.

"The Charging Winter" is melancholia in extremis, threatening to drag you into its undertow, whereas album highlight "Where The Night Is Calling" takes a 60s organ sound, a Peter Gabriel sample and kicks out the jams.

Further on HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey whispers "My mind is going…I can feel it" on the near title track "Carol Blaze (My Mind Is Going)", creepy and insistent, and positively unsettling. Most of the music here is dark and brooding, and not something you want to listen to on a dark and stormy night!

A T Vish, drummer of Hedwig and the Angry Inch as well as Projekt records band Lowsunday, is undoubtedly talented, and this release serves well as introduction to his slightly 80s, slightly Bowie, slightly Bauhaus, slightly Pink Floyd world of pain. Perhaps it's best summe dup the creator;

"Carol Blaze was originally conceived as the soundtrack to a fictional character of the same name, but has continued to grow into a traditional band. the music is suitable as a soundtrack to multi-media projects of a dark, science-fiction, gothic, or suspenseful nature."

Sounds about right. And anyone who is a fan of Monster Magnet is alright by me.

THE HITCHERS - Unspoken Truths

We liked their eepee hailing them as next in line to Green Day, Blink 182, Sum 41 and Bowling For Soup. They prefer the term punk influenced 50s rock and roll combo, and I for one, heartily approve of the word 'combo', so that's fine by me.

However, what was good over 3 tracks, can drag over 15, so how would they fare in the big bad world of a full length album? Pretty good, actually.

Opener "No Kisses For A Broken Face" sets out the template for their short, sharp, melodic burst of power pop punk. Their rock and roll influences do show through in places like "L.D.I.R", especially in the vocal inflections on some of the other numbers. They chuck in bits and bobs of ska on "Perfect World", and the end arrives all to quickly.

Top work, Hitchers combo!

CHEAP WINE - Crime Stories

Blimey! Who'd have thought that the Faces, Black Crowes and the Quireboys could be transplanted to Italy. Well they have, and their name is Cheap Wine. To make things even more remarkable it is, apparently, a concept album.

"Crime as transgression of a rule, as lack of respect for our desires, and ourselves. Basically, a realization of "what you shouldn't do". The purpose is to investigate the reasoning, psychology and presupposition of the one who commits a crime or breaks a rule. "

So there. Singer Marco Diamantini sounds like he's straight out of Dartford and his vocal styling is more Rod than Rod. Allied to some quality songs and performances, this is a hands down winner. In particular, the better tracks hint at vintage, early Bad Company with the likes of "Waitin' For a Fight" and "Tryin' to Lend a Hand" redolent of vintage blues rock. It's not original by any means, but when it's performed as well as this, who care. Surprises like this make the exploration of new music all the more worth while. Good work, chaps!