Wow. That’s all I can say about Steel Rules Die. On the basis of ‘Nostalgia For Beginners’ this is one very, very special band and a very good EP. I think for the unintiated a quick comparison to Hot Water Music or Avail would be the lazy reviewer’s way out, so I’ll opt for that. It’s melodic hardcore at its finest – throaty vocals ahoy with some harsh guitar riffs thrown about all over the shop for good measure. In At The Deep End have come up with a corker here because it’s essential listening.
Opener ‘Signs Of Cloudy Days’ kicks things off in absolutely awesome style, riffs crunching, cymbals crashing and an almighty vocal roar coming out of a bass-led 40 second introduction. Lyrically it tells the story of a destroyed relationship where one party has moved on while the other is left behind – except it comes over with more balls than you’d find during Wimbledon tennis fortnight. The multi-dimensional scream of ‘don’t take it back’ is like a clubbing over the back of the head and it sounds awesome. The riff that starts off ‘The World Never Ended’ sounds like The Distillers, but the vocal roar is again very similar to that of Hot Water Music, a more than worthy comparison in my opinion. ‘You Can Read All The Books You Want’ has the kind of breakdowns that fellow Leicester band My Awesome Compilation have become famed for, except Steel Rules Die do it harder and faster, without losing any of that melodic appeal. And not ones to overstep the mark either, some of these songs weigh in at less than two minutes.
‘On The Corner Of Fountain and Union’ batters and bruises its way through, with the gang-style vocals of “it is not too late” really adding an extra something, while ‘Still Waiting For The End’ has a guitar intro that reminds me of London pop-punkers Fletcher before the gruff vocals kick in. The drumming is exquisite, the basslines hard hitting and the overal quality is top notch. ‘Sticks And Stones Will Break My Heart’ initially slows the pace down, but only for a few seconds before a battering ram of a drum beat kicks in and the guitars are rammed down your throat. If you’re in the mood to get rid of some pent-up aggression, then this is the band for you. ‘If Everything Were Grey’ keeps the quality up, even if it would seem impossible to maintain such a high standard, while the EP closer, ‘Breaking Windows, Breaking Each Other’ is a fantastic brooding, dare I say it, emotional track that tugs away at the heart without losing the kick and bite the band show in the seven previous songs. It’s a quality end to a quality record.
In At The Deep End have struck gold here and this 8-track EP is well worthy of any spare pennies you may have. Brutal, honest, raw and melodic all in one go, it kicks and screams its way through 21-minutes of some pure brilliant punk rock and misses out of four-and-a-half-stars by the smallest of amounts. Spite, energy and songs with meaning prove that Steel Rules Die are one of the UK’s brightest hopes.
www.steelrulesdie.com
Paul