Just when I was beginning to think the recent batch of CDs that landed on my doormat were all crap, along came a record that has saved me. It would be wrong to call Emanuel the saviours of anything, but there’s no doubting this band will be one of the best new acts to hit us hard in 2005. ‘Soundtrack to a Headrush’ is an adrenaline-fueled barrage of rock and roll, sounding fresh from the multitude of copycat screamy bands that are currently doing the rounds. There’s an arrogance and a swagger that Emanuel exude and it’s this confidence which makes them an absolutely vital listen. From the opening barrage of ‘The Hey Man!’ (which basically gives the finger to anyone not willing to have their socks rocked off), all the way through to tracks like ‘The New Violence’ and ‘Distorted’, this is a record many people have been crying out to hear.
What Emanuel manage to do best is put forward this ‘fuck you’ attitude and snarl. It makes many of their peers long predominantly two-dimensional in comparison, and gives them an added energy which boosts their songs. While the band do come across like The Bronx at times, their ability to switch from the ferocious to a more calming style in the blink of an eye, and often during the same line of a verse, gives the band a refreshing versatility. Now I know you’re probably thinking that most bands can pull of time-signature changes and screams with verve, but Emanuel do it with a swagger previously found in 80’s rock bands. And I’m not talking about Def Leppard either. For me, Emanuel sugar-coat their punk rock snarls to produce a record that is one of the years best so far. ‘The Hey Man’ is a stormer, ‘You Cannot Rape The Willing’ a metaphor for something not quite so sinister and ‘The New Violence’ a hit-in-waiting.
With so many bands termed ‘the next big thing’, lavishing praise like that is pretty worthless nowadays. However, Emaneul let the music do the talking and it’s inevitable they’ll be featured in music press across the world, as well as infesting radio and music TV channels near you soon. ‘Soundtrack to a Headrush’ is exciting, fresh and has a burning desire to make me dance – what more do you need…
www.thisisemanuel.com
Vagrant
Paul