Here we have a short 3-track EP from a distinctly ‘London-sounding’ new punk band. First track ‘Breakdown payout’ is pretty simplistic, with not much more than powerchords, drums and whiny vocals throughout the entire song. While it’s pretty catchy, Kate Moritz’s vocals are grating, and despite it being less than two and a half minutes long, I find myself waiting impatiently for the song to end.
‘Six times over’ seems like a bit of a pointless addition here, as it doesn’t really seem to have much substance to it at all. Completely devoid of any drumming, you’re left listening to a repetitive guitar riff and barely-audible vocals, wondering ‘why did they bother at all’. CD closer ‘sold or seen’ is definitely the strongest track here. Sounding like a watered-down Distillers, it shows that this band do in fact have promise. It’s only a shame they didn’t submit an EP with three tracks of this calibre to review, as I could have been a bit more complimentary.
Overall, Love and a .45‘s self titled EP feels like it was a rush to get written and a rush to record. It’s a shame because the closing track shows that the band could definitely produce something a lot better if they just took a bit more time. On top of this, I’ve got to ask why the hell didn’t they include ‘Ten Dollar Issue’ which is featured on their Myspace, as it is far superior than any of these three tracks.
Andrew