Necklaces On The Branches Of Trees,
IpsofactoWow – a post-hardcore band that I really like! This short EP from Ipsofacto is just what I like to receive, a band working within a genre but not allowing themselves to be overly constrained or reliant on familiar images. Recorded at the prestigious Mighty Atom studios, ‘Necklaces On The Branches Of Trees’ hints at a bright future for this quartet.
Opener ‘The Y Made Me Do It’ swerves and crunches in equal measure, with juddering Biffy Clyro guitars kicking off the rolling energy of Rival Schools along with the thoughtful melodies of the most hummable pop song. It’s got a solid sense of rhythm and momentum and the richness of sound contributes to the prevailing depth and heaviness that becomes evident in the latter stages of the song. It sits cleverly next to ‘Bring Into Being’ which succeeds due to its employment of simple verse and chorus lines without exploiting them too music to reduce their impact. It’s almost as if Ipsofacto want to leave you wanting more rather than saturating their music with money shots, so to speak. With a soaring chorus that hints at a melodic sensibility to compliment the obviously punchy rhythms, it might not satisfy those wanting a throat-wrenching hardcore song but for the rest of us, it’s certainly well worth a listen.
‘Mexican Trade’ picks up the pace and strays a little too far into screaming territory for my liking because I think Chris Seacombe’s singing voice is good enough without straining that extra bit for the abrasive sound that he wants, and the constant time changes keep things interesting without being overly oblique and jarring. ‘Probono’ is unfortunately a touch too messy for my liking, with its build up only taking attention away from the other, more impressive moments on the EP. When Ipsofacto really kick in and throw themselves at the walls they’re at their best, forging a huge sound that needs to be played loud out of some big-ass speakers but when they scale things down cracks become evident. They need a bit of work on the quieter moments, but if they can nail that side of their music they’ll be a force to be reckoned with.
Ben
www.ipsofactoband.com
