Sometimes bands can try a little too hard to impress; glorified biographies and press releases, glossy pictures, pin badges and stickers…sometimes bands can forget about what is actually important – the music. I wouldn’t say falltofiction have necessarily lost sight of what they should be concentrating on, but they have worked exceedingly hard to make an impact on the people who have received their package. For me, falltofiction are a band that haven’t quite worked out what they want to be yet. The first three tracks on this new EP could all be by different bands as the quintet switch from melodic to quiet to loud in the space of the first 10 minutes. To be honest, it’s not until the Kent fivesome hit the third track that they actually make any kind of impact at all.
If ‘Ruby Red’ and ‘Waiting’ are bland and predictable, ‘Salvation and a Sore Throat’ really does stand out. There’s energy, drive and emotion – especially in the vocals – and the band have an urgency which all the bands within the post-hardcore genres need. More Finch than Far, when the drums hit hard and the band break out from the shackles that the first two tracks hold them in, falltofiction impress. The vocals are solid and the screams are never over-used, making ‘Simple Minds, Simple Hearts’ a decent listen too.
In their desire to stand out falltofiction try too many things and end up being a Jack of all trades and certainly a master of none. A couple of songs here show promise, especially when the band go Hell for leather in the middle section of this record, but there’s a lack of consistency which will no doubt hinder their progress in the short term. My advice would be to continue to work on a sound that comes naturally and see where that takes them, rather than meander through the sounds of a number of bands and hope to hit pot luck.
www.falltofiction.co.uk
Paul