When coming up with a name, bands really need to do their research. A quick Google search suggests there’s a German three-piece called Blacktop (they look a bit like a more balding ZZ Top), a ‘hyper, energetic punk band’ from Pennsylvania (who have been going since 2002), a band from Derby who used to be on Small Town Records…and there are probably even more. Moral of the story? Don’t choose a name loads of bands already have. It will confuse the fuck out of people if you want to get your name out further than your friends and family.
So Blacktop, from the North West of England, aren’t off to the greatest of starts. This EP is their debut and it’s a polished affair that shows a decent level of talent. But while their ability can’t really be questioned, their reliance on a sound and genre that’s so tired and old it’s on the verge of extinction like the dinosaurs, will probably leave the band floundering in and amongst the billions and billions of other bands who swallowed an Underoath record, detuned their guitars, chucked some shouting in and called themselves a ‘band’.
I don’t mean to sound crass, but I hear two or three bands like Blacktop every single day and none of them will get further than their own hometown. It’s not because they can’t play and it’s not because they’re no good. It’s because they’re boring. ‘This Is Ground Zero’ is way, way too safe to get anyone’s attention. It’s perfectly respectable fare and will have a few hundred loyal fans by kids who haven’t yet discovered ‘proper’ music. But anyone who has heard more than three of these emo-rock soundalike bands will hit stop within 30 seconds of this EP because it’s been done to death. Where’s the originality? Where’s the passion? Where’s the aggression?
Ultimately it’s all perfectly competent, but nothing new and nothing that hasn’t been done – and been done better – before. My advice? Get back to the practice room, come up with a new name and find your own identity. Play music you want to play and want to have fun with. But for God’s sake, try something new. For the love of the children.