What is it with bands and their bad punctuation? Surely Gatsbys American Dream should be Gatsby's? The same goes for A Victims Romance, who should probably stick an apostrophe in between the 'm' and the 's'. Not that it makes a bit of difference to the quality of the CD, but it's mildly annoying all the same. AVR are the latest band to come off of the Manchester conveyor belt of promising bands, although don't really sound like any of their north-western peers.
This EP, produced by The Maple State producer Andy Farrar, sounds pretty flawless for what it is - which is basically a cliched mix of Dashboard Confessional and The Postal Service. There's no hint of originality as sampled beats are sprinkled over acoustic strummings, so while it's pulled off with a level of talent, it's not a level that sticks out. 'The Warriors vs The Riffs' has some very standard and basic lyrics that take the opportunity to forceably rhyme as many words as possible. It's a trait many young songwriters adopt so I suppose I can't criticise too much. Vocally though, AVR don't come off all that bad - Jonny can certainly sing and reach a few higher notes.
Competent without being particularly exciting is a phrase I feel sums up the band well. There's nothing wrong with any of the four tracks here, just that other bands do this a lot better. As a first EP this sets the foundations, but I feel a lot more work on finding a sound is needed if the band want to keep up with Manchester's blossoming music scene.
www.avictimsromance.com
Paul
