Review Summary: Redeeming the name of the crunkcore genre one wub at a time.
The crunkcore / scream-step genre is known for being repulsive, shallow and obnoxious and for the most part they’re right. It’s not exactly a genre that many people have attempted to capitalize in on a serious manner; until Brothers Grimm. This outing is the solo project of Dann Grinn, a talented vocalist and composer from Pittsburgh. His project Brothers Grimm is one of the forerunners of the genre, amalgamating a convincing vocal performance with well constructed electronic work and solid songwriting.
There are only three tracks on this short EP, and none of them overstay their welcome. The opening track “Mannequins” is a perfect representation of the EP. The clean vocals are very reminiscent of Alex Gaskarth of “All Time Low”, and he stays in his mid to high range throughout the EP. The vocal hooks are primarily what make this EP so catchy, before the transition into an electronic break with Dann’s well adjusted harsh vocals. His screams have more natural range than his cleans, being able to jump from a screeching high to a guttural low instantly. The resulting melodies from this mix are downright infectious and overbearingly catchy in some portions, and while the contrast between these vocals isn’t something new in the genre, it’s never been executed quite as well as it is here.
The electronic work is a mix between house and dubstep, with the subdued to the floor house beats being used in tandem with the clean vocals, and the rough and unkempt dubstep sections for the harsh vocals. The quality and construction of each of the songs is spot on and every song feels varied, appealing and most of all, ear grabbing. Every song will latch itself into your head thanks to the crystal clear production and the excellent mixing job. He never goes overboard with the compositions and that's something that a lot of bands in this genre make the mistake of doing.
This EP goes to show that no matter how much of a bad reputation a genre has, there are always diamonds in the rough. While this EP may not be a shining starlet to turn said reputation around, it’s certainly a huge step in the right direction.
