Sharp End First - Songs For The Betrayed
I've never understood why people watch "Neighbours". Really, the show has nothing going for it. It has the weakest storylines known to man, the most unconvincing acting, an annoying theme tune - there aren't even any fit women in it for God's sake. You can feel the dust settling on you while you watch. Why do so many of us waste 20-odd minutes of our lives every day sitting in front of this insipid parade of blandness? By a similar token, I'm not sure who's going to be shelling out the cash for 'Songs For The Betrayed', the debut release from Brits Sharp End First, but I bet they could tell you everything about what Lou and Doctor Carl are up to on Ramsey Street these days.
There's nothing on this four track EP which is outright bad, but it's the very definition of generic. The promo bio says the CD is for fans of Poison The Well, Will Haven and Killswitch Engage, so you have an idea of what your ears are in for: a heavy dose of rhythmic, palm-muted, Morse code riffs on the low strings twinned with vocals that sound like a small dog chewing on a wasp. The problem is, like the latest tragic teenage love story on "Neighbours", you've heard it all before so many times that your ears have developed a callus. Every double bass drum beat, every pinched harmonic, every crushingly predictable break into whiny clean vocals: - they all sound as soul-destroyingly inevitable and exciting as Harold and Lou's latest shady business venture. Still, millions of people watch "Neighbours", and if you have an extreme aversion to being challenged by music or believe that it's sinful to hear something new, Sharp End First just might be your new favourite band.