I know this shouty, screaming thing is becoming a little cliched, but at the end of the day if it’s good music, it’s good music. Scary Kids Scaring Kids will certainly be generic scream-monkeys to some, while to others they’ll be at the top of the genre. And while I understand the argument (you either like it or you don’t), I do sympathise with the fans of the genre who are now getting barraged with sub-standard clones of the better bands. SKSK, for short, are one of the better new (or should that be nu) wave post-hardcore bands that are washing up from American shores. Coming across like Finch and Taking Back Sunday if the two combined and threw in some keyboards, there is certainly something different on offer to refresh a flagging style of music.
Don’t get me wrong, ‘After Dark’ is no masterpiece, but it is an enjoyable listen. The Arizona crew have a creepy feel, mainly eminating from the intelligent use of keyboards which separates them from the pack. Opener ‘What’s Up Now’ is a short, yet sweet, screamathon, tugging away with a dual vocal style which conforms to the emo rulebook. But the velocity and ferociousness of the track wins points and the haunted keyboard line is chaotic, yet maintains it’s melodic edge throughout. From here on in we get reasonably standard fare, albeit with odd exceptions. ‘Bulletproof‘ stops and starts and chops and changes with guitars flying around from all angles, but then with three (count ’em) guitarists in the ranks, that’s not a surprise. It does swell the sound mind you, making it extra thick and crunchy. The Finch comparisons continue with the closing ‘My Knife, Your throat’, which has a trippy piano-based intro and outro which creates a sense of atmosphere in a similar way the Temecula lot do.
If the rumours are to be believed there is a queue of major labels already lined up to snaffle this lot up. It’s not hard to see why as they look and sound the part and have a truckload of catchy songs to boot. If ‘After Dark’ is anything to go by, SKSK could well carve an interesting niche into the post-hardcore/emo world. It’s not ground-breaking or life changing, but it will certainly help cover the ground before Finch release their next record. The best part of all is you can download the whole thing, for free, at their website. Value for money and a band to watch out for – looks like Christmas has come early.
www.scarykids.com
Paul