Whitemare

Snider

Written by: AP on 29/02/2012 19:38:25

Somehow the odd few releases from last year still linger in my review list. One of them is the debut album by Brighton, UK based Whitemare, a band that comprises former members of Architects, Centurion and Johnny Truant. With such talent at their disposal, it is difficult not to expect grandeur from the album, titled "Snider"; curiously, however, the style being forged on it is neither metalcore nor progressive hardcore, but rather, blues tinged hardcore punk as professed by Cancer Bats, Every Time I Die and Gallows.

The songs on it range in length from 28 seconds to 2 minutes and 26 seconds, making it a brief blasting with little room for elaborate song structure. So you'd imagine them to be based on three chords at the very most; in reality, there is a surprising amount of texture packed even into the shorter pieces, such as opener "Son of a Bitch", its succedent "The Fuck", or centerpiece "You'll be Coming Home with Me". As the song titles suggest, there isn't a whole lot of ambiguity, let alone philosophy, to Whitemare's lyrics, but given the jolly attitude that resonates from the music, it is only appropriate Matt Johnson would sing about drinking and being pissed off.

In this sense Whitemare is actually quite similar to the now defunct Danish band The Revolt of Darwin. The focus is on groovy riffs and rhythms that make you move and, as the aptly titled "Rock & Roll" tells us, rock'n'roll. But even so, these booze-soaked tunes actually feature consistenly awesome bass lines and Southern flavored melodies, elevating them above mere drunken punk songs.

The one thing that stands out as a problem on "Snider" is that despite all of its great qualities, it fails at being particularly memorable. Whitemare brings little new to the existing palette of Southern hardcore, settling instead for writing solid songs that impress while they're playing, but then gradually fade out of your memory after it's over. "Snider" is a satisfactory, bite-size soundtrack to drinking and partying at what must be entertaining live shows.

7

Download: Son of a Bitch, The Fuck, Buzzkill, You'll be Coming Home with Me
For the fans of: Cancer Bats, Gallows, The Revolt of Darwin
Listen: Facebook

Release date 11.11.2011
Black Dream Records

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