No chance of nil points here!
Boston band (that's Boston, Lincolnshire by the way) Zero Point fall between genres and this gives them a wider appeal, they are not limited by their sound and this allows them to dabble with punk and more standard rock influences at will. With tours supporting UK Subs and Justin Sullivan of New Model Army fame it would be a shame if they were to get pigeonholed as just another punk band, Zero Point have far more about them than that.
The vocals are clean and tuneful but sometimes it's almost as if the singer struggles to convey the passion and intensity of the songs through the recording. Likewise with the guitars, at times they feel a little restrained and it's easy to visualise them really flourishing in a small sweaty venue to a dense crowd. It's worth noting though that the louder you play this album the better it sounds, seems obvious I know, but try it! Some of the songs would sound better faster, and to that end although this album is good I'd wager that Zero Point would really hit the mark in a live environment.
Musically Zero Point are hard to categorise and therein lies their appeal, their press release describes them as 'bending the lines between stoner rock and garage/punk' and I suppose that's as near as you're likely to get in terms of defining them! If really pushed they are akin to bands like Serafin and that's no bad thing, fast enough to get into but contrasted well with slower well crafted moments.
It's almost refreshing to hear a band that don't have to scream or shout to make an impression. The bass and drums work particularly well together (illustrated nicely on 'One Size Fits All') and whilst the songs are not fantastic they are good enough to make up a decent album. Weighing in at the thirty five minute mark there is no chance for boredom and it's short enough to leave you wanting to hear more.
'Time Stands Still' is a fine debut that bodes well for the future and stands them in good stead to really make the breakthrough. With the album under their belts look out for live dates around September.