No Recess

What A Beautiful Slum EP

Written by: PP on 12/07/2007 15:02:51

You can't help but admire No Recess' dedication into getting known outside of a country when you receive a full promo package all the way from France with a hand written request asking us for a review of their latest EP "What A Beautiful Slum". That to me is immediately a sign of of a band who loves what they are doing, because the fact that they take the time and effort into hand writing letters instead of just sending generic printouts through their management to various webzines demonstrates admirable dedication. Much respect for that.

A little bit less respect however goes for the opening track "Doll", which I'm sure I've heard in a slightly different form on one of the Nirvana records. Fortunately this is just a one off, and probably not an intentional imitation of early Nirvana, and in any case it is vintage grunge rock at its best, noisy and aggressive, and full of emotions in a non-emo way, which is a rare trait these days. The EP is a living proof that passion can be demonstrated without screaming, even if today's music media seems to think otherwise.

Songs like "S.N.F" work well in the textured recording quality that pays its tribute to Seattle's garages. While some people like their music nicely produced, I'm attracted to the buzzing sounds and the unrestrained passion that the (lack of) production allows for. The uncontrolled desperation in vocalist Francois-Regis' voice on the chorus "Hurry Up" is a glittering demonstration of that passion.

The fact that grunge is pretty much dead is always going to work against No Recess, because many people will always say they are just clinging to the past. But the EP shows promise of a band that could've been massive in the golden times of grunge during late 80s early 90s, even if in today's musical climate there will always be a ceiling above them limiting just how big they can get. "What A Beautiful Slum" serves as a great reminder of why Nirvana was loved by so many people, long before emo stepped into the picture.

Download: Doll
For the fans of: Nirvana
Listen: Myspace

Release date 12.01.2006
UNSIGNED BAND

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