Yet another quality band on the In At The Deep End roster, Hitechjet are quite rightly making waves in their native Lodnon and I have a feeling that it won’t be too long before those ripples extend further northward. A five-piece that owe as much to Hundred Reasons and Therapy as they do to the likes of Weezer or Grade, Hitechjet have their own inimitable style which bears reference to a collection of other bands whilst still maintaining that they have enough in their own arsenal to carve out a niche in the ‘scene’.
‘If You Take Anything’ weighs in with seven quality tracks, building up on the success that their demo received last year. Indeed the record was even critically acclaimed by ourselves, alongside a hell of a lot of zines at the back end of last year – it was noticeable that despite the fact it had ‘demo’ scribbled on the cd, this was a band destined for bigger things. ‘If You Take Anything’ not only justifies the praise but it literally dumps on it from a great height.
The likes of ‘The Score’ and ‘All This Time’ drive and twist, with the three-vocal attack bringing an extra dimension to proceedings. The former is a very impressive way to kick things off as the guitars play off each other in fine style, yet Brian’s vocals crash around with the kind of melody that so many bands struggle to replicate. Even though it is rough and ready round the edges (intentionally), Hitechjet manage to be able to recreate some fantastic singalong parts. ‘3am On The Internet’ sounds great even if the lyrical subject is a little daft (“schools out for today, running home I cannot wait to check my inbox again”), but as their buddies in Jerry-Built showed with ‘Near You’, being obvious and at time cliched lyrically does not make a bad song.
‘Remain and Remind’ slows things down before ‘Check Each Side’ hints at the likes of Avail with some melodic hardcore vocals mixing in with the now obligatory melodies. ‘Fed By Infrared’ reminds me of the early Manics material, the guitar riff especially, but I’m sure this is unintentional. EP closer ‘Slowdown’ starts off as feeback squalls and wails all around before mellowing out in the verses, building up to the inevitable rough-edged harmony that caresses the chorus.
Another little gem discovered by IATDE, so much so that it’s more of a shock if their latest release isn’t a beauty. ‘If You Take Anything’ is likley to generate even more good comments from the underground and if the current rate of progress continues, a future album is going to be one hell of a record.
www.hitechjet.com
Paul