Calling All Cars – ‘Raise The People’

Aussie trio Calling All Cars are just shy of turning ten years old. Starting off in a small town in 2005, the group steadily worked their way through tours before landing a damn good slot supporting Green Day in New Zealand. Since then, they’ve released four studio albums, toured with AC/DC, Queens Of the Stone Age, and Biffy Clyro, signed to Cooking Vinyl, and relocated to London. Their latest album, ‘Raise the People’ was produced by Steve Schram and Tom Larkin, and is sure to push these guys even further in their career.

Opening with title track ‘Raise the People’, the album roars to life with gritty and dirty riffs, and pack an absolute punch with their explosive energy. Haydn’s vocals immediately soar, despite this only being the first track – if this is how they’ve opened the album, then Calling All Cars have already set the bar incredibly high for themselves. Tracks such as ‘Black and White’ and ‘Every Day Is the Same’ showcase their electric riffs and big, monstrous-sounding drum work.

Despite falling vaguely in the rock genre, Calling All Cars have an eclectic style and tastes of music – no two tracks on the album are the same. For example, ‘My Red Light’ slows the tempo down, yet doesn’t lose any bite and strength that earlier tracks also display. ‘Werewolves’ falls back into the group’s comfort zone but that’s not a bad thing; a rough, abrasive song, it’s charged with buzzing energy that’ll get crowds either moshing or dancing. Closing with ‘Good God!’, these Aussies have kept the intensity and power consistent throughout the whole album, which is the same for Haydn’s vocals; never have they once faltered, and he’s constantly provided flawless, elephantine vocals that simply soar.

Sometimes, it’s easy to forget that not all bands from Australia fall into the metal category, such as Parkway Drive. Calling All Cars fall into another genre entirely – but even then, they can’t be really labelled as “just” a rock band. ‘Raise the People’ contains so many different tracks that swing from one sound to another without a hitch whatsoever. They possess some incredible and astounding talent; they’re a robust and exciting band, who have plenty of new things to offer the music industry.

JESS TAGLIANI