Fake H is a band out of New Jersey whose goal in life, I presume, is to prove that New Jersey can produce something other than bad hair bands, to atone for the damage done by Bon Jovi. However, their website states the following:
"Delivering thunderous rock or dropping to a slow melody, Fake H's songs represent the ups and downs of life. From the song "Relive" to "Gone" and "Shift to Rage", fans have come to appreciate their honest expression of life's drama. Coupled with their laid-back demeanor and 'what you see is what you get' attitude, Fake H always gains new fans wherever they take the stage. Through their intense touring schedule including performances at the Saint, the Continental, Starland Ballroom and the Rail, Fake H have already built a strong following."
I'll give them that, even though I haven't heard those songs.
Almost immediately one is reminded somewhat of Deftones, a band that fake h cites as an influence. That isn't to say they are a Deftones cover band, because they are not. Jim Bosse' vocal work shares some of Chino Moreno's characteristics, there is no doubt about it, but Jim is his own man too. The band as a whole is more structured. Where fake h presents a solid wall of music, Deftones is a hurricane - it's all over the place. Musically fake h is more complicated and much tighter. The band also cites Our Lady Peace as an influence, but thankfully they didn't introduce any of that into this EP. Sounding like Our Lady Peace immediately gets one of Tinfoil's fists of fury. Actually BEING Our Lady Peace gets one a cock-punch.
Putting these guys into a genre will prove difficult for me. Thankfully I'm thoroughly unprofessional, so I'm going wuss-out.
Song By Song:
EZ Pass: The first song on the bands first EP opens fast and furious. It does get somewhat repetitive at times, but that's my short attention span more than anything I suppose. Damn you, television.
Blood Flow Fading: Two words. Hot. Damn. This song is slow but powerful. Hopefully it is up on the band's MySpace page.
It's Getting Worse: The band shows they can handle more than a simple and over-used drum track. Ed Gilroy's drum work is behind the band, driving them into interesting rhythms.
Half Ass Hitler: You know, the comments for It's Getting Worse would apply here as well. Hell, they apply for the whole damned CD. This is some heavy and driven music. These guys don't take the easy road, they don't let up until your ears are bleeding. I can't say anything else that I haven't said already.
Two At A Time: Balladic (is that even a word?) but driven, this song is a perfect end to the band's first outing. It is more subdued than the rest of the CD but it is still a strong presence and leave me wishing there were more than five tracks to this EP.
Final Words:
If I were to find any real complaints about this, it would be that Jim's vocals need to be a bit more diverse. He can certainly belt it out, but his range of sounds is pretty limited, and there is room for experimenting in the songs presented here. Kudos to the entire band, however, for producing some of the best music I've heard in some time.
On to the sound quality of the disc. It's good. Pretty good, in fact.
8.5/10 Would have been more if there were more than 5 tracks on the disc. Let me know when you guys hit Southern Ontario up here in Canuckstan.
- music.tinfoil.net