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Masterful Melodic Punk

Heavily influenced by stars of the UK and US punk scene, Parisian childhood pals Raphael Mura, JB Ganivet and Marion Andrau relocated to London to cultivate (although I always consider punk to be something that just rusts and festers into something beautiful rather than being perfected) their vibrant sound.

Single, 'Watch And Play' is a curt injection of leering vocals, frustrated guitars and Nirvana-esque sounds with a lazy insouciance; it's a catchy and sharp tune, but this isn't all that Underground Railroad can do. The B-sides on this single would see it read equally as well as a short EP, such is their variety and compelling sound.

'Cookies and Milk' is a mix of incensed melodies and raging riffs underwritten with the curious and unsettling subject matter. Cavernous riffs open up 'Headache', a pounding migraine inducing number with an insistent vague vocal drawl, the guitars are intense and mesmeric with a note of discordance in squeals.

It would be wrong to simply leave Underground Railroad with the classification of punk as their tunes are far more experimental and tuneful than the average teen grunge improvisation, which may also end up in this category. There may be a fair amount of avant-garde thrashing, but it's done in the best sense as a climax to a well-built tune rather than a chaotic explosion of angst.