Out
of the quaint charm of Stratford, Ontario comes the first
major effort from emo-punkers Somehow Hollow. A indie CD
cut in 2001 was overshadowed by individual members being
called up to play in GRADE, one of the brighter lights on
the Canadian emo scene (until they called it quits last
July.) These four old friends have finally cut another disc
through Chicago-based Victory Records.
The
bottom line is...a very good job. Not a whole lot new and
breathtaking going on here but the CD is full of very accessible,
decently written tunes, solid guitar work, strong vocals
all tied in by a well balanced production/mixing job.
I'll
must admit, however, while I liked what I heard, flicking
through the tracks, alot of the music all started to sound
a bit too similar, but that's not especially unusual for
this genre. The same emo-punk guitar/drum/vocal cliches
kept popping up over and over again. But,then again...this
ain't supposed to be art rock...this is good fun rock and
roll. And Somehow Hollow has cut a fine record.
Would
love to check out the band in action on their next tour
through Canada, ideally in a grungy club versus an outdoor
stage.
Look
for the CD with the drugged out Mariah Carey lookalike on
the cover.
