Hot Cross - Fair Trades And Fairwells EP
Hot Cross Are:
Billy Werner -Vocals
Casey Boland - Guitar, Vocals
Josh Jakubowski - Guitar, Vocals
Matt Smith - Bass
Greg Drudy - Drums
Clocking at just over 17 minutes, "Fair Trades..." see's a bit of a departure from Hot Cross' previous sound. Seemingly doing away with the dissonant guitars and harsher of the vocal dynamics in favour of a much more straight forward, melodic approach, a step that they already seemed to be taking on their previous full length "Cryonics". However, don't get me wrong, they still retain an 'emo' sound and still employ the multiple volcalist approach; this is definately still Hot Cross. Anyway, onto the review:
1. Prepare/Repair: This song kicks off the album well, there is noticable improvement in the guitars with lots of fast lead lines apparent right from the beginning. Also the drumming here seems above average. There is also lots of interesting vocal variations; from the straight up yelled-sung to whispered parts ("Plastered behind scarlets eyes" at 0:49). In my opinion, this is one of the highlights of the album. All in all, this song sets the tone for the rest of EP quite well. 5/5
2. Solanka: Following in much the same vein as "Prepare/Repair", Solanka starts off with quite obscure chants of "Dolls and Shells" before the intricate guitars make and apperance once again. However, there are much more dual vocal parts apparent here than on the previous song. This is particularly evident at 0:56 when another vocalist takes over from Billy and sings a few lines. I have heard from various sources that the lyrical content of this song is based upon the book "Fury" by Salman Rushdie. However, I haven't read it and so can't really comment on it too much. Overall this song is fairly solid. 4/5
3. Throw Collars To The Wind: This was the first song I heard from this EP when it appeared on the bands Purevolume page and it did not dissapoint; it's a fairly stright-forward and driving song with, again, alot of vocal variation. I can see why they chose this to represent the EP as it sums up their new sound well. Also, whenever I listen to this song it makes me want to draw comparisons to Trophy Scars but I can never quite put my finger on what does it. Anyway, if you have never heard Hot Cross before I strongly advise you cheking this song out. 5/5
4. Better A Corpse Than A Nun: Aswell as being the technical highlight of the album this is also the longest song at 4:01. Two very fast guitar lines are played simultaneously and often weave in and out of each other,showcasing both guitarists' abilities. This song also seems to have more chaotic moments than some of the other songs here, reminding me more of what I have heard from thier debut " A New Set Of Lungs". This is one of my favourites from this EP. 5/5
5. Two Cripples Dancing: This is the only instrumental on the EP and while it is quite a nice melodic piece, I feel that something much better could have been put here instead. This would have been better off being retained for a future full length and seems to hinder the pace of the EP a bit. An ok song but a bit misplaced. 3/5
6. Consonants: The album closer seems to be the most melodic on the CD and while some parts are a little chaotic, some parts especially the "It is with the dream within our hearts that we proceed" are quite soft. Again, this song reminds me slightly of the aforementioned Trophy Scars. This is a good song with which ends the EP well. 4/5
In conclusion, although this is slightly different from the Hot Cross on "Cryonics" it is still very good and worth the listen. The added melodic edge shows that the band is not afraid to experiment and progress with thier sound and this can be nothing but a good thing. I would reccomend this EP to anyone who is already a fan of Hot Cross or any of the members past bands, or simply anyone who is into well-written, intelligent music. Also the added melody seems to lend Hot Cross some cross-over appeal and this may even be enjoyed by fans of bands like Thursday, as it is a lot more restrained than alot of modern screamo.
If you haven't heard this band and wish to check them out, a link to some of their songs including Throw Collars To The Wind is located [url=http://www.purevolume.com/hotcross/music]
here.[/url]
This was my first review so please feel free to critique, give advise or comment.
