Bullet Train Blast

Bullet Train Blast EP

Written by: PP on 09/12/2009 19:29:27

A few months ago a previously unknown Danish band Bullet Train Blast blew me away while supporting Black Stone Cherry. Their brand of modern hard rock / alternative rock had loads of punch and a great deal of attitude, not to forget the instantly memorable song structures that for once didn't sound superfluous at all, all of which combined set them far apart from the boring, formulaic mainstream rock / post-grunge acts the major labels like to shovel down our throats year after year. The band have just come out of the studio with three brand new songs - "When I'm Gone", "Give It A Try" and the brilliant "Waste Of Time" - but before we move on a little history lesson for you readers. Bullet Train Blast have been around since 2005, except they used to be called The Expendables, but that band never truly caught on with the Danish audiences to be perfectly frank. Since then, they've changed the vocalist, the guitarist, and the bassist so the only two members remaining are the guitarist and the drummer (unless I misunderstood something), so a name change was natural. Whether they used to sound different than Bullet Train Blast I don't actually know, but somehow I have a hard time imagining the old vocalist would've been anywhere near as good as BTB's Larsen. More on that soon, though.

Essentially, Bullet Train Blast play riff-driven melodic groove rock, with heavy focus on the riff part of the description. The two guitarists in the band have composed instantly grabbing riffs that'll induce you to rock out with your cock out, pull out your air guitar, etc etc. You know, the entire repertoire of terms used to describe music that kicks ass guitar-wise in every way possible. Now add a brilliant vocalist both in a strictly technical sense and in terms of entertainment value, who has a rowdy, powerful, strained voice that emits as much attitude as someone with decades of experience underneath his belt, capable of hair-raising harmonies especially during the fantastic choruses, and you have music that's MADE to destroy in a live environment. Except it works beautifully on a studio recording as well for a change! Heck, even the drummer displays sheer talent with great drum introduction to "When I'm Gone" as well as the odd roll and fill here and there.

Sometimes instrumental talent is easy to recognize from music that doesn't necessarily translate into interesting songs. That's not the case here, however, as you'll see on "Waste Of Time", for example. The tempo is upped from medium to high-octane, with focus still heavily on groovy riffs and catchy melodies overall, but the spotlight is stolen by Larsen's awesome "yeaaaaaaaaaaah-yeaaaaaaaaaah" chorus that makes you wanna rock out and sing along from the first listen. What's especially great about the song is that the section sounded identical in a live environment, further proving that Larsen's going to stir up some critical acclaim in the Danish media in due time. And why not international as well? All three songs on the EP display a band with burning passion for their music, and whenever that shines through the songs simultaneously to the songs grabbing the listener without letting go, the sky's not the limit. Hands down the most promising EP I've heard from a Danish rock band to date. How are they still unsigned?

8

Download: Waste Of Time
For the fans of: Guns N Roses, Velvet Revolver, Black Stone Cherry, Rose Tattoo
Listen: Myspace

Release date 23.11.2009
UNSIGNED BAND

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