More Than Life have done quite well for themselves during their short existence. They have also been working very hard. Despite having been a band for only half a year they have recorded a demo (which sold out by the way) as well as this EP. Whilst racking up over 50 shows in their native UK they have shared the stage with much bigger names in the hardcore scene - names such as Bane, Verse and Dead Swans to name but a few. They also have two short European tours currently booked. Essentially, things are looking up for More Than Life, 5 kids from Frome, UK who started the band simply to make something "that means something to us, tour as much as we can and create memories driving around, playing our songs to people". Judging by the high standard of blistering hardcore found on this 6-track EP they are more than deserving of their success to date, and would definitely deserve anymore success that could and should come their way.
Recently in the UK a lot of people have been turned onto hardcore by a young band called Gallows. You may have heard of them. While More Than Life do not sound like Gallows, they sound more like early Comeback Kid, comparisons can still frequently be made to them. For instance, frontman James sounds very like Frank Carter, especially towards the end of EP highlight
'Faceless Name' as he screams "I'm just a ***ing faceless name!" The song twists and turns, going through many tempo shifts, even squeezing in (and getting away with) an ambient guitar solo, all the while remaining relentlessly intense. This intensity rarely lets up over the 16-minute course of the EP. When it does let up it is to serve a purpose - to accentuate the fast, thrashy sections.
Of course, the slower passages here work very well on their own. The tremolo guitar picking alongside the gradually building chords in EP opener
'Aperature' build atmospherically, in an almost post-rock kind of way before the tension is released in the next track. A similar intro is used in closer
'Fear' before giving way to a fast-paced punk song with furious vocals. The overly simple chords here may be a little too upbeat for the genre but the song is very strong structurally and this makes up for it. James sings/shouts with a great deal of urgency but is at his best, as are the rest of the band, on
'Never Ender'. Dramatically changing texture as well as tempo it makes for a very interesting listen, especially with lyrics such as "dead space is eating me alive from the inside out" sung with such fearful conviction.
The 'Brave Enough To Fail EP' is certainly a very enjoyable and exciting listen and must surely translate incredibly well in a live setting - provided that the band can maintain the level of intensity shown here. More Than Life have had a very successful career given the short time span that they have been together, and they have deserved it. This EP is simply a milestone following a lot of time spent on the road touring- it is also bloody good too!
