Russell Toomey: Vocals/Guitar
Adam Cook: Guitar
Phil Myles: Drums
Ginger: Bass
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1. In A Cage (On Prozac)
2. Head In The Ground
3. Bullet (One Day Closer)
4. Going Out For Nothing
5. Whisper The Fear
6. Knock Me Down
7. Her Religion
8. Tell Me Nice
9. She's Leaving
10. Me Look You Look
11. You Dumb
12. Fifty Quid
The first I heard of
My Red Cell was their lead single
In A Cage (On Prozac). It immediately demanded my attention with it's melodic intro and dynamic chorus. Lead singer Russell Toomey's brilliantly grotesque, shrapnel-like vocals deliver killer lyrics that portray themes of anger and hate.
"Got a knife and I know how to use it, got a knife and I know that he's to blame". The strength of this song matched with some of the best lyrics I have ever heard drove to to purchase
13 In My 31.
What lay in store for me was a battlefield of angry, but somewhat poetic lyrics. knives, guns, bullets, bombs, cuts, bruises, tears and hermaphrodites. Not to mention a rotted brain, a lot of burnt kids, some babies dropped on their heads
(Baby Massacre Posse reprezent) plus three hearts (two broken and one bleeding).
I came to the second track
Head in the Ground with high expectations. Quiet versus then build to a wicked chorus. A simple, but highly effective song structure. Next up came
Bullet (One Day Closer), which is a song of lost love, grief, and suicide.
"Don't mind you, I love you". A nice guitar piece finishes of this relatively subdued song, and you can't help noticing how far on the edge Toomey's voice soundz.
Going Out For Nothing opens with a chunky riff and a scream, which then morphs into what could be a singalong type chorus, if the vocals weren't so angry. This song highlights some of Toomey's somewhat unconventional vocal approaches, but the end result is spectacular.
Things then change on
Whisper the Fear which is one of my favourites. "
Wait a minute where you going with that knife, don't you dare take his life, you can't play god and the devil at the same time.". The lyrics are particularly chilling.
"It's a dangerous world, but my mind scares me more". A quieter song with an upbeat tempo, not to mention superb lyrics.
Knock Me Down opens with an interesting sounding guitar piece (almost sounds Asian), and some poetry.
"I aint mad with you darling, just a bit disappointed". It's a unique song with themes of loss and a breakup.
"Did you notice the knife I just stuck in your back, well I'm sorry darling but didn't you want it back?" Toomey screeches on
Her Religion. That along with
Tell Me Nice are probably the weak points on
13 In My 31.
She's Leaving is another wicked song. Toomey's delivers the song brilliantly, and the lyrics are stand outs, again.
"Nobody trusts a tall man, he can see further, then we can".
Me Look You Look,
You Dumb and
Fifty Quid then end the album.
You Dumb doesn't really flow perfectly, but is still good non-the-less. It also contains refrences to burning kids and learning Japanese.
Fifty Quid finishes on a touching note, with Toomey singing with sincerity.
"Don't you ever touch her, she's my best friend. Don't you ever touch her, or I'll kill you my friend". The chorus on the song is wicked, and is another definite highlight.
Fresh, unique and exciting,
My Red Cell are a band to watch. This debut is not only exhilarating and fun, but also inventive. Extremely impressive and highly recommended.
Highlights:
In A Cage (On Prozac)
Fifty Quid
Whisper The Fear
4.5/5
