This is a bit of a strange one to review for a ‘punk’ website as it is not really in the slightest bit punk. CLONE ROMEO are a four piece and are essentially and self described as ‘simple guitar driven rock’ hailing from Grimsby. To give you a rough idea of what they sound like, they have sited PEARL JAM and FOO FIGHTERS as influences. Now most readers of a punk website may not usually prefer to listen to this stuff but to be blunt I fucking love the early-mid nineties American grunge-rock sound so CLONE ROMEO have automatically scored points.
Although living up to such famous artists who have sold millions and millions of records is hard task especially when trying to sound unique, CLONE ROMEO haven’t really done too bad a job; in fact this demo is rather impressive. The production, whilst being a self produced effort is also pretty good. I’ve definitely heard a lot worse from bands who have claimed to be into a proper ‘studio’.
The vocals are meaty, angst ridden and carry the songs well reminding me of SCREAMING TREES in a deepish and brooding way. Whilst the Americanisms in the accent are certainly evident, they sound damn good and effective. The guitars are loaded with plenty of filth and the odd effect here and there but again, they sound good and work well with the beefy riffs provided, the lead guitar soars and cuts through perfectly when it is needed on the last track, ‘Picture’.
This demo clearly shows the foundations of a good band. It’s commendable that they are obviously playing music they like and not because it’s cool as last time I checked it wasn’t really en vogue with what Kerrang or MTV2 say is fashionable. But apart from this, the songs are good and show a lot of talent. The lead guitarist is also in THE NEXT AUTUMN SOUNDTRACK; a band more familiar with this site. (3.5)
www.cloneromeo.tk
Mike