Beat Six
The industrial outpost of Staines has been immortalised thanks to chav-spoof Ali-G and less-than-poor indie outfit Hard-Fi. Staines’ latest export, Beat Six, have come here to turn the experience of living in such a wasteland into a cathartic experience.
This debut offering could quite easily be compared with hometown brothers Hard-Fi. This would be an injustice: Beat Six pack a harder punch with their driving bass lines and razor-edged guitar phrasing.
When vocalist Rob Williams sings, you can feel the grit between his teeth: His dystopic lyrics and belting voice put all other comparisons to rest.
As the chorus explodes into a fury of attacking guitars Williams bellows out his apocalyptic message: “As the chemicals ignite with fuel….we’ll be heading for disaster”.
Don’t be mis-lead. Beat Six are a far cry from the end of the world and lakes of fire. Their uniform indie-rock is nothing ground-breaking. It’s just that they seem to have bigger balls than most other indie bands around.
Track two, Little Mess, is not as rousing but still retains the same sharp hooks of …’chemicals’. Live Fast Lie Down sees the band returning to their original physical stature, their guitars cutting through the mix like machetes.