Glocca Morra / The Greek Favourites

Split EP

Written by: TL on 20/09/2011 14:23:51

So, I ask you for God knows which time: How many more American, melodic punk-rock bands does the world need. I don't know about you, but I'm done saying "at least one more" and then cutting a record some slack, because in all honest if I had 5 DKK for each promo we receive in this genre, I would be able to have a drink with AP on his birthday on Thursday. A prospect that otherwise looks unlikely considering my current financial state. I digress however, and what we really need to talk about is indeed more American, melodic punk rock, this time in the form of last year's split from Glocca Morra and The Greek Favourites - another promo that has been sitting in my queue for quite some time.

On one side of the record we get three tracks from Glocca Morra, a Philadelphia trio that mixes the instrumentation from mathy indie and grass roots level punk-rock (think Bear Vs Shark) and puts vocals on top that are both rough and ever so slightly emo-tinged (think Scream Hello or Polar Bear Club). Of the three tracks offered, "Bedford Avenue", "New Years Eve (Titan House)" and "Weekend At Glen Burnies III", "New Years Eve.." seems to be the one that has the most drive and makes the strongest impression, but in all honest, it goes for all three that I have a hard time finding much to say about Glocca Morra. I've already said enough to give you a clue about which type of band you're dealing with, and you probably know if you're interested in checking out another specimen. Personally, I think these three songs are easily enjoyable, yet little better than par for the course in the style, and the question then is whether that's good enough for you.

As for the other side of the record, The Greek Favourites only supply me with two tracks here, and judging from these, they are different yet not too different. The instrumentation is similarly melodic and low-fi, but the songs seem much more energetic, and the vocals are more over in vintage emo/screamo territory. Effectively the two songs, "Wax Wings" and "Cold Soft Metal", sound a bit like very early Moneen material, and in the race for my attention, that puts them at least a hair's breadth in front of Glocca Morra. It doesn't hurt that "Wax Wings" sports a pretty catchy little guitar signature either.

Overall though, this is a very typical split from two bands who have yet to take more than a few steps out of their respective garages. The truth is that plenty of these records come out each year, and it goes for most of them that the parent bands haven't gotten far enough to stand out from their scene of origin. What also goes for most of them however, is that even generic material from the melodic punk rock scene is often both believable and easily enjoyable, which means that a split like Glocca Mora/The Greek Favourites will mostly still manage to give you an impression of being a slightly better record than just a totally average release in music overall. And as I've often said before, if you live and breathe for this genre, or for finding bands while they're young, don't hesitate to check this out. If you like your records to sound a little more developed however, you can probably give these guys a couple of years before they'll be your cup of tea.

6

Download: New Years Eve (Titan House), Wax Wings
For The Fans Of: Bear Vs Shark, Boyfriends, old Moneen
Listen: Glocca Morra bandcamp - The Greek Favourites bandcamp

Release Date 01.09.2010
Make Out Party Records


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